Canada Global (Web News) The average rent for all housing types nationwide as of December was $2,109, down 3.2 per cent from a year ago, marking the fifth consecutive month of rent declines in December, according to the latest report from Rentals.ca and Urbanation, which uses data from internet listing services on primary and secondary rental markets.
This decline follows growth of 8.6 per cent in 2023 and 12.1 per cent in 2022.
2024 is the first year that rents have seen an annual decline since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, when rents fell 5.4 per cent.
But despite the year-over-year decline, overall rents across the country have increased by 16.8 per cent over the past five years, an average of 3.15 per cent per year.
Ontario saw some of the biggest rent relief, with the average asking rent for all apartments falling 4.7 per cent to $2,332. Apartment rents across the province then increased by 3.7 per cent during 2023.
Despite these declines, Ontario remained the second most expensive province to rent in, second only to B.C.
The city of Ottawa ranked 13th in terms of rent costs nationwide. The average one-bedroom apartment in Ottawa is listed for $2,012, but the modest rent relief is not enough to help those most in need of housing. Ottawa’s latest point-in-time count on the night of Oct. 23 found that 2,952 people are homeless citywide. That’s a 13 per cent increase from the 2,612 counted in 2021.
Ottawa Mission’s 2024 annual impact report says Ottawa is filling shelters to deal with devastating levels of food insecurity and homelessness. The charity says it saw unprecedented levels of homelessness across the city in 2024.
