Asking rents in Canada dropped by 2.3% year-over-year in December, averaging $2,060, marking a full year of decline with prices hitting a 30-month low. The latest report from Rentals.ca and Urbanation revealed that December 2025 was the 15th consecutive month of decreasing average asking rents across Rentals.ca’s listings network.
Throughout 2025, average asking rents in Canada fell by 3.1%, surpassing the annual drop experienced during the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite a 5.4% decrease compared to two years ago, rents still stand 14.1% higher than pre-pandemic levels in December 2019.
Shaun Hildebrand, President of Urbanation, attributed the decline in rents to a reversal of demand and supply dynamics that were driving rents up between 2022 and 2024. Factors such as a surge in apartment completions, slowing population growth, economic uncertainty, and affordability challenges have collectively contributed to the downward trend in rents.
The report highlighted that rent decreases were most noticeable in secondary market units. House and townhouse rental asks dropped by 5% to $2,071 in December, while condominium apartment asking rents decreased by 4% year-over-year to $2,131. Purpose-built apartment rents also dipped by 1% year-over-year to an average of $2,049.
By province, average apartment rents in December saw declines of 5.4% in British Columbia to $2,353, 3.2% in Ontario to $2,257, 2.7% in Alberta to $1,671, and 1.9% in Quebec to $1,934. Conversely, rents increased by 7.1% in Saskatchewan to $1,395, 1.8% in Nova Scotia to $2,268, and 1% in Manitoba to $1,633.
In Canada’s six largest markets, Vancouver and Toronto experienced the steepest annual rent decreases for apartments, dropping by 7.9% to $2,654 and 5.1% to $2,498, respectively. Calgary saw a 5% decrease to $1,824, Montreal experienced a 2.3% drop to $1,952, Ottawa’s average asking rent decreased by 0.5% to $2,153, while Edmonton saw rents rise by 0.8% to $1,518.
