Ottawa average rent up 5%; Toronto has highest rents & rents across Canada to go up 6% in 2019


TORONTO, Jan. 22, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The average rent for a one-bedroom apartment in Ottawa increased 5 per cent in December over November, according to the January report by Rentals.ca and Bullpen Research & Consulting.

Ottawa’s average rent for a one-bedroom was $1,608 in December vs. $1,538 in November, which was up 9 per cent over October’s monthly price for a one-bedroom rental.

Toronto is still the priciest city for one- and two-bedroom apartments, and Ontario is still the most expensive province for renters.

The monthly rent report tracks statistics from Rentals.ca and analyzes trends in renting for cities across Canada. The report shows average rent in most Canadian cities for one-bedroom rentals were slightly up month over month in December.

In Ottawa, Rich Danby, owner of Rich Ottawa Investments and ROI Construction, believes high rents and low vacancy rates are not going away anytime soon in the country’s capital city.

“Higher interest rates and higher mortgages discourage tenants from buying a home,” he said.

“2018 was a rough year if you were apartment hunting in Ottawa,” said Matt Danison, CEO of Rentals.ca. “Some people experienced line-ups and bidding wars in hopes of securing a rental home in Ottawa much like what we have seen in Toronto over the last couple of years."

But help is on the way.

“Developers and construction lenders are bullish on the rental market in Ottawa as construction started on 1,542 rental apartments in the Ottawa Census Metropolitan Area in 2018 according to data from CMHC, the highest level since 1991," said Ben Myers, president of Bullpen Research & Consulting.

Rentals.ca and Bullpenconsulting.ca are predicting rents in Toronto will increase by 11 per cent in 2019; in Mississauga rents will go up by 10 per cent; Ottawa rents will increase 9 per cent and Vancouver rents will go up 7 per cent, compared to 6 per cent across Canada in their 2019 predictions for the Canadian rental market. Rentals.ca based the report on its data and from interviews with 16 housing experts around the country including data analysts, professors, economists, property managers, rental advocates, landlords and politicians.

Information: Matt Danison, CEO at 416-910-7722 ext. 1 or md@rentals.ca or Ben Myers at ben@bullpenconsulting.ca