Canada-wide rents experienced a 0.2 per cent month-over-month increase and a rather modest 3.5 per cent year-over-year increase. Photo Credit: iStock.
The average one-bedroom rent in St. Catharines was down 0.9 per cent month-over-month to $1,713 in July 2024, according to the latest Rentals.ca market update.
One-bedroom rents are also down 1.4 per cent year-over-year from July 2023.
Meanwhile, a two-bedroom unit in St. Catharines costs an average of $1,969, which is up 0.2 per cent from the previous month and down 2.0 per cent from last year.
For Canada-wide numbers, the report notes, “Average rents grew by 0.8 per cent from June, which represents a reversal of the previous month’s 0.8 per cent decline. As we approach the end of the summer season, this increase is a return to average market rents hovering just above $2,200.”
Canada-wide rents experienced a 0.2 per cent month-over-month increase and a 3.5 per cent year-over-year increase.
Out of all the Canadian listings examined Rentals.ca report, the average for a zero-bedroom studio for July was $1,625, a one-bedroom was $1,929, and the two-bedroom average was $2,299.
Therefore, the average one-bedroom and two-bedroom rents in St. Catharines are below the Canada-wide average.
Regarding rankings, St. Catharines is the 26th most expensive city to rent a one-bedroom unit out of the 35 cities examined.
The report notes that condo studios were the only housing type to record a Canada-wide annual decline in asking rents in July.
Meanwhile, purpose-built studios rents experienced the fastest annual growth of 12 per cent in July, indicating that Canadians are in the market for smaller rentals to help offset the rapid increase in overall rent prices.
Purpose-built units are those in properties that are built specifically for rental or long-term tenancy and usually include amenities such as fitness areas, swimming pools, and communal spaces.
The report also notes that Ontario and British Columbia were the only provinces to record a year-over-year decline in apartment rents in July, down one per cent and two per cent respectively.
Meanwhile, apartment rents soared in Saskatchewan (+22 per cent), Alberta (+15 per cent) and Atlantic Canada (+15 per cent).
The five most expensive cities of the 35 examined in the report include two in British Columbia (Vancouver and Burnaby) and three in Ontario (Toronto, Mississauga and Burlington).
The five most affordable cities of the 35 examined in the report include one in Manitoba (Winnipeg), two in Alberta (Fort McMurray and Edmonton) and two in Saskatchewan (Saskatoon and Regina).
The other Niagara Region city included in the analysis is Niagara Falls. Niagara Falls ranks as the 27th most expensive one-bedroom unit rent with an average of $1,631, while the average two-bedroom unit was $2,021.
The data used in the Rentals.ca analysis is based on monthly listings from the Rentals.ca Network of Internet Listings Services (ILS).
The rankings and report are written by real estate research firm Urbanation.
The Rentals.ca Network of ILS’s data covers both the primary and secondary rental markets and includes basement apartments, rental apartments, condominium apartments, townhouses, semi-detached houses, and single-detached houses.
Jay Goldberg is the Ontario Director at the Canadian Taxpayers Federation. He previously served as a policy fellow at the Munk School of Public Policy and Global Affairs. Jay holds a Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Toronto.
