Average asking rents drop for 12th straight month to $2,123 in September: report

A duplex shows a "For Rent" sign in the Montreal borough of Lasalle on Thursday, June 26, 2025. Average asking rents in Canada fell 3.2 per cent in September from a year earlier to $2,123, marking the 12th straight month of declines. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Christinne Muschi

TORONTO — Average asking rents in Canada fell 3.2 per cent in September from a year earlier to $2,123, marking the 12th straight month of annual declines.

The latest monthly report from Rentals.ca and Urbanation says asking rents for purpose-built apartments were down 2.1 per cent from a year ago to an average of $2,093, while asking rents for condominium apartments fell three per cent to $2,226.

Urbanation president Shaun Hildebrand says renters in many regions are seeing the best levels of affordability in two years, with those in the most expensive markets of Vancouver and Toronto seeing rents at their lowest levels in nearly four years.

Average asking rents in Canada were down 1.2 per cent from two years ago, marking the first two-year decline since January 2022.

B.C. and Alberta saw the largest declines in September with asking rents falling 5.5 per cent year-over-year to an average of $2,430 and $1,734, respectively.

Ontario recorded a 2.7 per cent drop to $2,316, followed by decreases of 2.2 per cent in Nova Scotia to $2,293, 0.5 per cent in Quebec to $1,957 and 0.3 per cent in Saskatchewan to $1,374.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 7, 2025

Sammy Hudes, The Canadian Press