Rent prices in Southern Ontario increase for fifth consecutive month in August

For the fifth consecutive month, rent prices have increased in regions and cities across the GTA.

According to the latest data from Bullpen Research and Consulting, and TorontoRentals.com, the majority of areas across the GTA saw average rent prices increase in August.

While prices did increase in Peel Region, it wasn’t a significant spike—Mississauga saw the average rental price increase by 2.1 per cent, while prices in Brampton increased by just one per cent.

Halton Region saw slightly more variation—in Milton, the average price increased 2.3 per cent. However, the average price in Oakville decreased 5.5 per cent.

The most dramatic fluctuation in month-over-month rental prices occurred in Durham Region—prices in Oshawa declined by 1.3 per cent, while prices in Pickering dropped by 7.1 per cent.

Conversely, prices in Whitby increased by 6.6 per cent, while prices in Ajax rose by 12.4 per cent—the biggest increase among GTA cities.

“After several months of large rental units leading the recovery out of the pandemic-induced rental slump, smaller units were popular in August, with average rents for one-bedroom units increasing by a whopping 5 per cent monthly in the GTA,” Ben Myers, president of Bullpen Research and Consulting, said in a news release.

“The market bottom is now clearly in the past, with many of Toronto’s most desirable neighbourhoods seeing average rents increase by $200 to $350 per month over the last six months.”