Canada-wide rents experienced 3.3 per cent year-over-year increase in August. Photo Credit: iStock.
The average one-bedroom rent in St. Catharines was down 2.1 per cent month-over-month to $1,677 in August 2024, according to the latest Rentals.ca market update.
However, one-bedroom rents are up three per cent year-over-year from August 2023.
Meanwhile, a two-bedroom unit in St. Catharines costs an average of $1,967, which is down 0.1 per cent from the previous month and down 0.2 per cent from last year.
For Canada-wide numbers, the report notes, “Rents grew at their slowest annual rate in 34 months, decelerating sharply from annual growth rates of 5.9% in July, 7.0% in June and 9.3% in May.”
“The moderation in rent increases can be attributed to apartment completions this year reaching their highest total in decades, as well as a recent slowdown in population growth and a softening labour market.”
Canada-wide rents experienced a 0.2 per cent month-over-month decrease and a rather modest 3.3 per cent year-over-year increase.
Out of all the Canadian listings examined Rentals.ca report, the average for a zero-bedroom studio for August was $1,604, a one-bedroom was $1,929, and the two-bedroom average was $2,323.
Therefore, the average one-bedroom and two-bedroom rents in St. Catharines are below the Canada-wide average.
Regarding rankings, St. Catharines is the 28th most expensive city to rent a one-bedroom unit out of the 35 cities examined, a drop of four places since June, indicating the city is becoming increasingly more affordable compared to other major Canadian municipalities.
The report notes that condo studios were the only housing type to record a Canada-wide annual decline in asking rents in August, while rental prices for townhouses were flat.
Meanwhile, purpose-built studios rents experienced the fastest annual growth of 10.7 per cent in August, 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 August, with Ontario rentals down four per cent from August 2023 to an average of $2,390.
Meanwhile, apartment rents soared in Saskatchewan (+21 per cent), Alberta (+11 per cent) and Manitoba (+9 per cent).
The five most expensive cities of the 35 examined in the report include three in British Columbia (Vancouver, Burnaby and Surrey) and two in Ontario (Toronto and Mississauga).
The five most affordable cities of the 35 examined in the report include one in Manitoba (Winnipeg), two in Alberta (Edmonton and Fort McMurray), and two in Saskatchewan (Saskatoon and Regina).
The other Niagara Region city included in the analysis is Niagara Falls. Niagara Falls ranks as the 20th most expensive one-bedroom unit rent with an average of $1,698, while the average two-bedroom unit was $2,026.
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.
