Canada-wide rents experienced 2.1 per cent year-over-year increase in September. Photo Credit: iStock.
The average one-bedroom rent in St. Catharines was up 1.4 per cent month-over-month to $1,700 in September 2024, according to the latest Rentals.ca market update.
One-bedroom rents are also up 1.6 per cent year-over-year from September 2023.
Meanwhile, a two-bedroom unit in St. Catharines costs an average of $2,013, which is up 2.3 per cent from the previous month and up 2.9 per cent from last year.
For Canada-wide numbers, the report notes, “The annual rent growth in Canada moderated for the fifth consecutive month, slowing substantially since May when rents were rising by more than 9% per year.
“However, average asking rents were 13.4% higher than two years earlier and 25.2% higher than three years earlier during COVID-19.”
The report points out that the deceleration in rents coincides with a significant cutback in net inflows of non-permanent residents.
Canada-wide rents experienced a 0.2 per cent month-over-month increase and a rather modest 2.1 per cent year-over-year increase.
Out of all the Canadian listings examined Rentals.ca report, the average for a zero-bedroom studio for September was $1,656, a one-bedroom was $1,954, and the two-bedroom average was $2,347.
Therefore, the average one-bedroom and two-bedroom rents in St. Catharines are below the Canada-wide average.
Regarding rankings, St. Catharines is the 25th most expensive city to rent a one-bedroom unit out of the 35 cities examined, an increase of three places since August, indicating the city is becoming more expensive compared to other major Canadian municipalities.
The report notes that condos and townhouses recorded a Canada-wide annual decline in asking rents in September, while rental prices for all types of apartments increased.
Meanwhile, purpose-built studios rents experienced the fastest annual growth of 11.1 per cent in September, 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 September, with Ontario rentals down four per cent from September 2023 to an average of $2,380.
Meanwhile, apartment rents soared in Saskatchewan (+24 per cent), Manitoba (+14 per cent) and Atlantic Canada (+13 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, Oakville 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 27th most expensive one-bedroom unit rent with an average of $1,647, while the average two-bedroom unit was $2,022.
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.
