If you thought getting a roommate to split the rent would be a solution to the housing crisis in Calgary, recent data shows that might not be the case.
Rentals.ca just released its September 2024 Rent Report, which compares the cost of rent in 35 cities across Canada, and it looks like Calgary just keeps getting more expensive.
The report found that most major markets in Canada saw an increase in the cost of shared accommodations, with Calgary now reaching an average of $928 a month. The exception is Vancouver and Toronto, which both saw decreases from a record high of $1,773 to $1,481, and $1,302 to $1,234, respectively.
rentals.ca
rentals.ca
The cost to rent in Calgary is skyrocketing across the board with the average asking price for a one-bedroom apartment in YYC now $1,708. That’s a 1.1% decrease from last year and 2.5% decrease from last month.
A two-bedroom now costs $2,094 monthly, a 2.6% decrease from year and a 2.9% from last month.
Cities in Ontario and BC still make up the top 10 highest rents in Canada; however, most are experiencing annual declines.
In BC, average apartment rents dropped by 5.2% annually, while Ontario saw a 4.3% decline overall.
“Rent increases in Canada finally returned to their longer-term average after nearly three years of excessive growth,” said Shaun Hildebrand, president of Urbanation.
“This was achieved through a combination of more supply being built, as well as a rollback in demand from population-related changes in government policies.”
Meanwhile, rent growth continues to pick up in Canada’s most affordable provinces, with Saskatchewan leading rent growth this month. The province led the country with a whopping 21.4% annual increase, bringing average apartment rents to $1,338.
Our neighbours to the north in Edmonton are the only city among Canada’s six largest markets to record annual rent growth and are slowly creeping up on Calgary prices. The cost to rent an apartment in YEG rose 9.2% to an average of $1,579.
With files from Allison Stephen