Average rent for Vancouver apartments dips below $3,000 for first time since 2022

Homes are pictured in Vancouver, Tuesday, Apr. 16, 2019. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jonathan Hayward

The average asking rent for a Vancouver apartment has dipped below $3,000 per month for the first time since July 2022, according to the latest data from Rentals.ca.

Asking rents for purpose-built and condominium apartments in the city fell to an average of $2,993 in March, a year-over-year decrease of 4.9 per cent.

But despite that decline, Rentals.ca said Vancouver rents remained the highest across any major city in Canada. Toronto was the second-most expensive, with an average asking rent of $2,782 per month for purpose-built and condo apartments in March.

Both cities have seen rents decreasing for months, according to the online rental listing website.

The news was not as good for larger families. While asking rents for one-bedroom units in Vancouver decreased to an average of $2,657, rarer three-bedroom units increased to $4,378.

Across the province, rents for purpose-built and condo apartments fell 1.9 per cent year-over-year in March, to an average of $2,494 – but still remained higher than Ontario's average of $2,410.

B.C.’s overall decrease was despite an increase in asking rents for one-bedroom units – which went up 2.7 per cent, to $2,227 – and an ongoing surge in so-called “roommate rents.” According to Rentals.ca, the average asking price for a room in a shared unit increased to a record high of $1,195 last month.

B.C. also topped the list for medium-sized markets, with the five priciest cities – North Vancouver, Burnaby, Richmond, Coquitlam and Langley – all located in the province's Lower Mainland.

The average asking rent in North Vancouver was $3,270, making it even more expensive than Vancouver.

The data is based on monthly listings on Rentals.ca and its network, and is separate from rental data collected by the Canada Mortgage Housing Corporation.