The cost to rent a Toronto apartment fell by about 7 per cent last year: report

A for rent sign outside a home in Toronto on Tuesday July 12, 2022. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Cole Burston

While Toronto's rental market remains one of the priciest across the country, costs for apartments declined last year.

According to new data from Rentals.ca, the average monthly asking price for apartments of all unit types in Toronto decreased to $2,632 in December, down by 7.1 per cent year-over-year.

This is the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic that rents saw an annual decrease. Back then rents fell 5.4 per cent across the country. The fall in rental costs last year follows two years of growth, with rent going up by 8.6 per cent in 2023 and 12.1 per cent in 2022 in Canada.

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December also reflected the fifth consecutive month of rent declines for the country, with average asking prices falling by 3.8 per cent since September—something the report says reflects a "steepening" fall heading into 2025.

In Toronto, the report says the average rent for a one-bedroom apartment was about $2,372, down 6.5 per cent compared to 2023, while a two-bedroom apartment went for $3,098, down by 7.4 per cent.

Three-bedroom apartments in Toronto saw the smallest decline in 2024, the report notes, dropping by 3.3 per cent to an average rent of $3,718 per month.

Many in Toronto look to roommates to ease the financial pressures of rental costs, however, Rentals.ca says the demand for shared units actually “appears to be waning” in the general market—especially in Toronto. In December, Toronto saws a decline in shared accommodation rents, which went from $1,311 per month in 2023 to an average of $1,194.

The most expensive rental market in Ontario in December, outside of the Greater Toronto Area, was seen in Kanata, located just southwest of Ottawa, averaging at $2,664.

Meanwhile, Oakville reported the second-highest rental price growth in Canada last year, with the average cost sitting at about $2,892 in December (up 14.3 per cent).

Niagara Falls, Sarnia and Brantford also saw fast-growing rents, increasing by 10.6 per cent, 7.7 per cent and 5.9 per cent, respectively.

On the other side of the coin, Brampton and Richmond Hill led apartment rent declines in the province with annual decreases of around seven per cent in both communities.

Here is how much average rent prices for one-bedroom apartments cost for January across Ontario:

• Toronto, $2,360
• Mississauga, $2,263
• North York, $2,204
• Etobicoke, $2,197
• Burlington, $2,190
• Brampton, $2,103
• Guelph, $2,039
• Waterloo, $2,013
• Ottawa, $2,012
• Barrie, $1,990
• Kitchener, $1,866
• Oshawa, $1,826
• Niagara Falls, $1,800
• Kingston, $1,786
• London, $1,760
• Brantford, $1,735
• Hamilton, $1,723
• St. Catharines, $1,669
• Windsor, $1,554