Rent in Mississauga second-most expensive in Ontario in 2023, beating Toronto: report

Apartment rent in Mississauga is now one of the most expensive in Ontario, even outpacing Toronto.

The 2024 Rental Market Trend Report from liv.rent was just released and it finds Mississauga is in the top three most expensive in Ontario.

The average price for an unfurnished one-bedroom unit in Ontario was $1,920 in 2023, according to the report.

The report finds the three most expensive cities for rent in 2023 are Markham at $2,312, Mississauga at $2,278 and Toronto at $2,251. The numbers are the average monthly rent for a one-bedroom, unfurnished apartment in 2023.

These numbers, however, are not the same as the latest monthly National Rent Report from Rentals.ca and Urbanation. This report found a Toronto one-bedroom would cost about $2,521 a month, and a two-bedroom unit is $3,314. And it found Mississauga was the second most expensive city to rent in Ontario for the month of December. The average one-bedroom rent was $2,371.

But looking at the entire year of 2023, Mississauga is also listed as one of the top cities for rent increases from 2022 — with a 17 per cent increase, according to liv.rent.

Markham saw a whopping 24 per cent increase while Vaughan-Richmond Hill rents went up 22 per cent. Toronto’s rents went up 15 per cent, according to the report.

Those looking to make a move to a less expensive city may want to try Western Ontario. The top three cheapest cities to rent an apartment in Ontario were Niagara Falls at $1,552, St. Catharines at $1,559 and London at $1,573.

The liv.rent report suggests immigration is driving the high rent prices. In 2023, Canada saw its highest immigration levels since 2011. Canada’s Immigration Levels Plan had a target of 465,000 new immigrants and in for the first three quarters of 2023, Canada welcomed 371,299 new immigrants.

Ontario had the largest number of immigrants — 44 per cent of total new immigrants, followed by B.C. (15 per cent), Quebec (12 per cent) and Alberta (12 per cent).

In each of the last three years, Ontario saw more than 130,000 new immigrants coming to the province annually, according to the report.

However, fewer Canadians are choosing to move to Ontario. The number of Canadians moving to Ontario dropped 9 per cent.

But there are also fewer Ontario residents leaving the province. The number of Canadians moving out of Ontario saw a drop (-7 per cent).

As Ontario tries to build more homes to keep up with the demands, the report found one city that is growing quickly. Burlington saw a 1,194 per cent growth in housing project completions in 2023.

Kitchener was the second-highest increase in housing projects completed, with a 308 per cent year-over-year growth. Markham had the area’s third-highest growth in new housing projects, with a 218 per cent increase in 2023.

And Mississauga saw a 157 per cent increase in housing project completions in 2023 — the fourth-highest in the GTA.

The report’s data is drawn from liv.rent’s rental market analysis supported by data from government agencies. Average rent price data is based on liv.rent’s monthly rent reports.

See the full report here.

Main photo: Sigmund