Rental Vacancy Rates Hit 16-Year Low
Rental vacancy rates in the GTA continue to drop, hitting a 16-year low of 1.1%, according to a new report from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp.
The GTA vacancy rate for apartments and condo rentals was down from 1.4% in 2016, according to the CMHC report, the Rental Market Survey for the Greater Toronto Area.
The average monthly rental for an apartment in the GTA rose to almost $1,300/month, up 4.5% from last year. Looking for a bachelor? That will cost over $1K/month. A two-bedroom unit averages $1,392, while a condo costs an average of $2,080/month.
“Rising costs of home ownership and lack of new rental supply kept vacancy rates at historic lows,” CMHC Principal Market Analyst Dana Senegama wrote in the report.
The report also found the increasing cost of home prices gave landlords capacity to raise rents for new tenants and still remain competitive.
And while there has been an increase in rental housing construction, it has yet to outpace the rental demand. Demand has only increased as the cost of owning a home in Toronto remains out of reach for the majority of potential first-time buyers, the report said.
