BC renters seeing "largest annual decline" since 2021 in this surprising city
Vancouver’s asking price to rent a one-bedroom apartment is $150 less than this time last year, as Canada’s most expensive rental market shows signs of stabilizing.
That’s according to Zumper, a Canadian housing platform that monitors trends in rental prices. Their October Rent Report pegs the median price of an empty one-bedroom apartment in Vancouver at $2,650.
Zumper says Vancouver rent prices are seeing the “largest annual decline for both bedroom types in over three years.”
Zumper
Vancouver remains Canada’s most expensive city for renters, but prices aren’t as jaw-dropping as they once were. In October 2023, landlords were asking $2,800 for a one-bedroom. Earlier that year, the average rental price crossed the $3,000 threshold.
According to Zumper, two-bedroom units in Vancouver now cost an average of $3,730. Prices for both apartment types have decreased between 5% and 6% since last year.
But rentals are still far from affordable. Metro Vancouver’s living wage soared past $25 per hour in 2023, according to the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives. That’s far more than BC’s minimum wage of $17.40 per hour. The living wage rose more than $5 per hour between 2021 and 2023.
Zumper’s pointed increasing construction on new apartments as one factor potentially working to stabilize rent prices in the Vancouver area.
BC communities make up three of Zumper’s top five most expensive rental markets in Canada. Vancouver takes the top spot. Burnaby and Victoria come in third and fourth place, respectively, just after Toronto.