(Realtor.ca)

Rent dropped to 2019 rates across parts of Metro Vancouver in December: Rentals.ca report

Rent costs have declined since May, a trend expected to continue due in part to the COVID pandemic

  • Jan. 19, 2021 12:00 a.m.

Metro Vancouver residents on the hunt for a new apartment last month were offered much cheaper rent than last year, according to a new national survey.

Rentals.ca found the average monthly rent for apartments and condo rentals in Vancouver dropped 6.7 per cent.

“In many markets, rents have dropped to the point where tenants can lease a suite with an additional bedroom for the same rent as they were paying last year,” said Rentals.ca CEO Matt Danison.

For a second year in a row, Vancouver topped the list for having the most expensive average monthly rent out of 34 other Canadian cities.

One-bedroom units are priced at $1,855 per month, down by 4.4 per cent from last year. Two-bedroom units are roughly $2,635 per month, a nine per cent decrease.

Meanwhile, rent costs outside the Vancouver core have declined since May, a trend expected to continue the next four months due to more supply being met with weaker demand, as well as the ongoing pandemic.

Surrey placed 19th for average monthly rent for a one-bedroom unit, at $1,403 per month, but came in 18th for average monthly rent for a two-bedroom, at $1,744.

Richmond finished fifth among other expensive cities, with average monthly rent for a one-bedroom home at $1,730 and $2,082 for the two-bedroom variety.

Burnaby came in eighth for seeing a one-bedroom home listed at an average of $1,676 monthly, and fifth for a two-bedroom kind, at $2,186.

New Westminster came in 14th on the list with a one-bedroom home at $1,511 and a two-bedroom at $1,852.

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