October 2013 Rental Market in Ontario

TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwired - Dec. 12, 2013) - The rental apartment vacancy rate¹ in Ontario urban centres² was 2.6 per cent in October, 2013, essentially unchanged³ from 2.5 per cent in October, 2012 according to the Fall Rental Market Survey released today by Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation.

"Strong demand from young adult households and fewer rental households moving to homeownership supported rental demand in Ontario this fall. Meanwhile, less in-migration to Ontario and more condominium rental completions competing with existing rental units exerted upward pressure on vacancy rates. The net effect these factors had on the rental market in the fall of 2013 was negligible," said Ted Tsiakopoulos, CMHC's Ontario Regional Economist

On the basis of a sample of structures common to both the 2012 and 2013 surveys⁴, the average 2-bedroom rent increased by 2.7 per cent in Ontario. While the fixed sample rent grew slightly faster than the provincial guideline amount and the cost of living index, this rate of increase was in line with the growth registered in the fall of 2012.

Vacancy rates rose in Northern and Eastern Ontario, tightened in south-western Ontario and remained flat in GTA. The lowest vacancy rate was registered in Toronto (1.6%) and Guelph (1.9%) while the highest vacancy rates were registered in Windsor (5.9%) and Peterborough (4.8%).

Rental Market data is also available in English and French at the following link: Fall Rental Market Report

As Canada's national housing agency, CMHC draws on more than 65 years of experience to help Canadians access a variety of quality, environmentally sustainable and affordable housing solutions. CMHC also provides reliable, impartial and up-to-date housing market reports, analysis and knowledge to support and assist consumers and the housing industry in making informed decisions.

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¹ The survey is based on privately-initiated rental apartment structures of three or more units.

² Urban centres defined as centres with a population of 10,000 or more.

³ The change in the vacancy rate for the current year was not significantly different, on a statistical basis, from the previous year.

⁴ Year-over-year comparisons of average rents can be slightly misleading because rents in newly built structures tend to be higher than in existing buildings. Excluding new structures and focusing on structures existing in both the October 2012 and October 2013 surveys provides a better indication of actual rent increases paid by tenants.

Additional data is available upon request.

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