Niagara Falls and Welland rose in the rankings of Canada’s most expensive cities in which to rent, largely because of declining rent prices throughout most of the country.
That’s according to a new Rentals.ca report.
Overall Canadian rents fell by 2.2 per cent in October compared to a year prior.
The monthly Rentals.ca National Rent Report includes 60 cities across Canada and has recorded a year-over-year decline in national rents for 13 consecutive months.
Out of those 60 cities, Niagara Region’s major urban centres rank among some of the most affordable in Canada, and certainly in Ontario. In fact, Welland is ranked as the third most affordable major city in Canada’s largest province, after Sarnia and Windsor.
In terms of overall rankings, Niagara Falls ranks as Canada’s 38th most expensive city, St. Catharines comes in at 44th, while Welland ranks 45th.
That’s a change in rankings for all three cities. Niagara Falls rose two spots in the national rankings, meaning it became more expensive compared to other cities. Welland rose one spot. St. Catharines, on the other hand, fell by two spots, indicating it became more affordable compared to other cities.
In Niagara Falls, the average rent for a one-bedroom unit was up 3.7 per cent from September to $1,757 and up 1.6 per cent from October 2024.
Two-bedroom units were priced at an average of $1,987, which is down 3.3 per cent from September and down 1.5 per cent from October 2024.
In St. Catharines, the average one-bedroom was down 1.1 cent from September to $1,658 and down three per cent from October 2024.
Two-bedroom units were up 1.3 per cent from September and down 3.6 per cent from October 2024 to an average of $1,934.
In Welland, the average one-bedroom was down 0.5 per cent from September to $1,581 and down five per cent from October 2024.
Two-bedroom units were priced at an average of $1,805, which is down 2.7 per cent from September and down 4.3 per cent from October 2024.
The report notes that this is the longest stretch of declining rent prices since the COVID-19 pandemic, at 13 months in a row. However, the report also notes that declines in rental prices seem to be slowing.
“While rents declined on an annual basis for the 13th month in a row, the year-over-year decline in October was the smallest of the past 11 months,” reads the report.
The report also notes that “rental demand continued to decline in October, marking the third straight month of reduced renter activity. With levels tracking near historic lows and winter approaching, Canada is on pace for the slowest winter of rental demand in recent years.”
Out of all the Canadian listings examined in the Rentals.ca report, the average for a zero-bedroom studio for October was $1,610 a one-bedroom was $1,822, and the two-bedroom average was $2,220.
That means rents in all three of the Niagara Region cities looked at in the report fell below the national average.
The report notes that Manitoba and Saskatchewan saw modest year-over-year increases in apartment rents in October. Everywhere else, however, rents fell, including in Ontario, where rents were down an average of 2.2 per cent to $2,299.
The five most expensive cities of the 60 examined in the report include two in British Columbia (North Vancouver and Vancouver) and three in Ontario (Oakville, Toronto, and North York).
The five most affordable cities of the 60 examined in the report include four in Alberta (Red Deer, Fort McMurray, Medicine Hat, and Lloydminster) and one in Atlantic Canada (St. John’s).
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 Canadian Affairs Manager at the Consumer Choice Center. He previously served as the Ontario Director at the Canadian Taxpayers Federation and 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.
