Renters looking for a new place have more options than ever.
What happened: New purpose-built rental housing grew by 4.1% year over year in 2024, per a new Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation report. It’s the largest annual uptick in Canada’s rental housing supply in over 30 years.
Why it’s happening: The growth is the result of projects started several years ago that were finally completed. These projects were initially driven by demand from people who can no longer afford to own a home as well as the immigration surge (as new immigrants typically rent).
- Many developers also turned to purpose-built rental housing after becoming disillusioned with condos, as demand for that type of housing is growing scarce.
Why it matters: All these new units contributed to a meaningful cooling off of rental price growth this year after reaching record highs. In November, the national average asking price hit a 15-month low. That remains way higher than rent three years ago, but still.
Yes, but: The rental building boom may be over as developers navigate a world of higher costs and construction labour shortages. Fitzrovia CEO Adrian Rocca told Storeys that construction of purpose-built rentals is actually down 75% from two to three years ago.—QH