"We're cooked": Edmontonians weigh in on fast-growing rental prices
Edmontonians are weighing in on rising rental prices after it was reported that the city is facing one of Canada’s highest annual rental growth rates.
Zumper released its Canadian rent report earlier this week. While Edmonton remains one of the most affordable Canadian cities, with a one-bedroom unit costing an average of $1,270 per month, it’s a 1.6% increase from last month and a staggering 27% increase from February 2023 to February 2024.
When you do the math, the average rent for an entire year in Edmonton at that price point would equate to $15,240. That number is frightening when you consider that this time last year, the annual total would have amounted to $12,000.
According to Zumper’s data, Winnipeg has seen the second-fastest annual growth, at 22.7%. The average cost of a one-bedroom in Manitoba’s capital is slightly higher than Edmonton’s, at $1,350 monthly.
Following these reports, Edmontonians took to Reddit to express their anxiety over the high rent inflation.
Edmonton has one of the highest year on year rent inflation
byu/KosmicEye inEdmonton
“My brother and I are into our 4th year in a townhouse owned by a larger corp – so far the rent is up 10.5% since day 1. We are definitely lucky and are not moving for this purpose alone (on top of getting 60% off internet too),” one wrote.
Another said, “My rent was 1800$ in 2019. It is now 2700$ My gas and electric was about 300$ It is now about 500-600$.”
“Yup we’re cooked,” one lamented.
“I know this sucks for everyone, but damn, this is not a great time to be a new grad… I’m making exactly what I hoped to make before I went back to school 4ish years ago to move out, start saving, etc., and now that’s not enough. I’m lucky to have my parents, at least,” another replied.
Another user added, “I’m making more money than I ever have in my life and yet I’m poorer than ever.”
- You might also like:
- Canadians are moving to Mexico chasing a better life, not a pipe dream
- The cost of rent in Edmonton is rising faster than anywhere else in Canada
- Someone is renting a bunk bed and calling it a "prestige accommodation"
Last month, we spoke to Edmontonians who shared similar fears about the state of housing affordability, adding the renting situation is “nerve-wracking” and causes lots of uncertainty.
Alberta is one of a handful of Canadian provinces that does not have a rent control policy in place, and there are no limits to how much a landlord may increase the rent. However, there are some rules in the Residential Tenancies Act on how and when rent can be increased.
In neighbouring BC, which has the highest rental prices in the country, rent control policies limit annual rent increases for tenants, currently capped at 3.5%.
However, when a renter leaves a unit, there are no legal limits for how much a landlord can increase prices for a new renter.