Rents declined substantially in Niagara Falls in January, outpacing declines nationwide, as rents across Canada fell to their lowest levels in 33 months.
That’s all according to a new Rentals.ca report.
The monthly Rentals.ca National Rent Report includes 60 cities across Canada and has recorded a year-over-year decline in national rents for 17 consecutive months. Rents also fell 1.3 per cent on a month-over-month basis, the largest decrease since February 2020.
Out of the 60 cities tracked in the Rentals.ca report, Niagara Region’s major urban centres rank among some of the most affordable in Canada, and certainly in Ontario. Welland is ranked as the second most affordable major city in Canada’s largest province, after Windsor.
In terms of overall rankings, Niagara Falls ranks as Canada’s 42nd most expensive city, St. Catharines comes in at 45th, while Welland ranks 47th.
Niagara Falls fell three spots compared to January, while Welland dropped one and St. Catharines remained steady. Falling in the rankings means a city is becoming more affordable compared to other municipalities.
In Niagara Falls, the average rent for a one-bedroom unit was down 4.1 per cent from January, coming in at $1,615. Rents were also down significantly from February 2025, falling by 7.9 per cent.
Two-bedroom units were priced at an average of $1,936, which is up 2.0 per cent from January but down 9.2 per cent from February 2025.
In St. Catharines, the average one-bedroom was up 1.1 per cent from January to $1,626 but down 1.8 per cent from February 2025.
Two-bedroom units were down 0.4 per cent from January and down 2.7 per cent from February 2025 to an average of $1,937.
In Welland, the average one-bedroom was up 2.7 per cent from January to $1,546 and down 6.5 per cent from February 2025.
Two-bedroom units were priced at an average of $1,872, which is up 2.7 per cent from January and 1.7 per cent from February 2025.
The report notes that this is the longest stretch of declining rent prices in years, surpassing declines seen during the COVID-19 pandemic, at 17 months in a row. It also suggests that rents are becoming more affordable as a percentage of household income.
“As rents continue to soften and average weekly wages show moderate gains, the affordability of rent as a percentage of renter household income has continued to improve,” reads the report. “The average rent in February accounted for 29% of average renter household income, down from 31% a year ago and 34% two years ago, and below the 30% affordability benchmark.”
In addition, “while asking rents remain above pre-pandemic levels, wage gains have outpaced asking rent increases over a six-year period, resulting in an improvement in affordability for Canadians.”
Out of all the Canadian listings examined in the Rentals.ca report, the average for a zero-bedroom studio for February was $1,565, a one-bedroom was $1,808, and the two-bedroom average was $2,232.
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 Atlantic Canada, Manitoba, and Saskatchewan saw modest year-over-year increases in apartment rents in February, continuing a trend seen in January. Everywhere else, however, rents fell, including in Ontario, where rents were down an average of 5.0 per cent to $2,243.
The five most expensive cities of the 60 examined in the report include four in British Columbia (North Vancouver, Vancouver, Burnaby and Coquitlam) and one in Ontario (North York).
The five most affordable cities of the 60 examined in the report include three in Alberta (Fort McMurray, Medicine Hat, and Lloydminster), one in Quebec (Quebec City), 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.
