Average Rent For A Toronto Condo Has Gone Way Up & Here's Why It's Getting Worse
Thanks, economy.
Lake Ontario and the Toronto skyline.
From prices to competition, renting a condo in Toronto isn't getting any easier in 2022.
The Toronto Regional Real Estate Board released its Q3 Rental Market Report Thursday, detailing yet another sharp rise in rental rates, and said the current state of the Canadian economy is one of the reasons why this terrible trend is continuing.
"With many would-be first-time buyers temporarily on the sidelines in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA), due to higher borrowing costs, rental demand has remained strong in the face of falling supply," reads the report. "Competition for condo rentals has intensified as a result and negotiated rents have increased dramatically."
The Bank of Canada has raised interest rates six times so far in 2022.
What's the average rent in Toronto?
The TRREB reported that between July and October of this year, the average rate of a one-bedroom condo was $2,481, up 20.4% from the same time last year.
For two-bedroom apartments, the average cost is up to $3,184, up 14.5%.
"Double-digit year-over-year rent increases continued to be the norm," the report stated.
As costs remain sky-high, demand is also a major problem. Toronto's tally of listed rental units dropped by 25.6%.
Condo vacancy rates have also dropped dramatically from their pandemic highs, with Toronto's currently at 1.9%. All other GTA locations are below 1%.
“Immigration into the GTA plus non-permanent migration for school and temporary employment have all picked up markedly. Add to this the impact of higher borrowing costs on the ownership market and it becomes clear that the demand for rental housing remains strong for the foreseeable future," said TRREB President Kevin Crigger in a press release. "The decline in rental listings over the past year are a further warning sign to policymakers that the overall lack of housing in the region extends to the rental market as well."
The TRREB data aligns with a broader look at rental rates across all types of housing from Rentals.ca earlier this month, which said Toronto has the second-highest average rental rate in Canada, behind only Vancouver.