Double-digit year-over-year rent increases continued to be the norm in Q3 2022. 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. Competition for condo rentals has intensified as a result, and negotiated rents have increased dramatically.

“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. Investorowned condos have been an important component of the rental stock for more than a decade. However, 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 average one-bedroom condominium apartment rent in Q3 2022 was up by 20.4 per cent year-overyear to $2,481. The average two-bedroom apartment rent at 3,184 was up by 14.5 per cent compared to the same period in 2021. “Rental housing is an increasingly important piece of the housing puzzle. While investor-owned condo units have been an important source of supply, current tight market conditions and double-digit average rent growth point to the need for additional purpose-built stock – the construction of which has been lacking in recent years,”