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Median rents in Canada are rising again, with March numbers showing the first monthly increase since November as strong demand for rental housing continues to outstrip supply, according to the latest national rental report from Rentals.ca and Urbanation Inc.
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Annual asking rents for all property types in Canada rose 10.8 percent, or $196, to $2,004 in March, according to the report released April 13. Average rents rose by one percent month-on-month.
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“As supply fails to keep pace with current demand, we can expect further upward pressure on rents in the coming months,” said Shaun Hildebrand, president of Toronto-based real estate research firm Urbanation, in a press release.
The fiercely competitive rental market this spring was fueled by last year’s record population growth of over a million people and a lack of affordability in the home ownership market due to rising interest rates, he said.
In a previous report published in January, Hildebrand said the rapidly growing population is finding it increasingly difficult to afford to own a home or find suitable rental accommodation. He pointed to higher borrowing costs keeping rental demand strong amid falling supply.
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The result reflects reported gains in home selling prices real estate company Royal LePage on April 13, which was attributed to a premature return in buyer demand and an ongoing shortage of inventory.
“We’ve reached the end of the market correction — the real estate downturn — and the market has been growing again since about mid-March,” said Phil Soper, CEO of Royal LePage.
Vancouver remained the most expensive of Canada’s largest rental markets. The city had the highest average monthly rent in March, with one-bedroom rents reaching $2,743 and two-bedroom rents hitting $3,653 — 17.3 percent and 21.5 percent year-over-year, respectively.
In Toronto, the average monthly rent for a one-bedroom apartment rose to $2,506, up 22.2 percent annually, while the rent for a two-bedroom apartment was $3,286, a rise of 19.7 percent.