Ottawa still third for major market rental prices

Ottawa held its place as the third most expensive major market city for renters in Canada, according to a monthly rental price report from Rentals.ca.

Average monthly rents in Canada's capital for December were higher than those in Montreal, Calgary and Edmonton, but were still more than $500 cheaper than Toronto and $600 cheaper than Vancouver.

Overall, Ottawa ranked 13th out of the 35 cities listed, seeing a 0.6 per cent increase compared to the month prior for a one bedroom apartment, with an average cost of $1,950 (0.3 per cent for two bedroom apartments at $2,315). However, compared to January 2022, rent prices have increased more than 16 per cent.

In Gatineau (up to 22nd on the list), the average rent went down between December 2022 to January 2023 to $1,659 (-3.6 per cent), but compared to January 2022, the monthly price of a single bedroom rental unit still increased 11 per cent.

Kitchener and Québec City experienced the greatest price hike when looking back at the previous year, with January rents increasing by 32 per cent and 30.7 per cent respectively year-over-year.

According to the report, renters can expect “more moderate rate of rent growth.” With fewer people buying homes and continued population growth, rent prices are still expected to rise, but that increase is expected to average out at about five per cent across the country, which is more aligned with “the long-term historical average for rent inflation.”