REGINA — While major Canadian cities continue to see rent decline, Regina’s own rental market is increasing.
According to annual reports from Rentals.ca, the city has recorded an average rent increase of about 12 per cent over the past 13 months, bringing the current average rent to $1,471.
Giacomo Ladas, communications director with Rentals.ca, said one cause of this increase is inter-provincial migration.
“People are moving out of Ontario and B.C. for some of the prairie provinces and the Maritimes as well.”
With a large number of people moving to Regina, Ladas said, the city’s rental vacancy rate is in an unhealthy spot at 2.7 per cent
“CMHC's (Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation) last report said that the vacancy rate in Regina was still below 3.0 percent, which is still considered unhealthy.”
Ladas said this number indicates supply and demand dynamics are not as loose as they are in other areas across the country.
Rental supply in Regina is also increasingly being priced at a premium,” he noted
“The cost to build new supply is higher. So we are still seeing a lot more newer units compositionally. A lot more of these newer units have a little bit more of a price tag.”
Renters not graduating
Often, young people start renting in hopes of owning a home down the line.
However, with soaring home prices in the city, Ladas said this isn’t happening.
“So when that stalls, that makes a little more of a stranglehold on units, which can see the prices increase.”
Ladas also said this lack of movement is causing abnormal rental trends heading into the summer.
“We typically see rental prices increase as we move into the summer rental season. So the fact that there are areas of the country where we're not seeing that, and we're seeing a straight-up decrease in asking rents, is quite alarming.”
Ladas explained that summer is a time when renters will have spaces available for higher prices to accommodate students moving in during the fall, which is a healthy market.
Upcoming market
In the next year or two, Ladas expects to see a soft rental market.
“We're seeing a lot of negative outflow, and by the end of 2025, the country's on negative population growth and on top of that, we see about 200,000 rental units that are under construction right now across the country.”
A softer market in the next year or so is a perfect time for buyers to rent, noted Ladas.
With a soft market, Ladas said renters should look for units offering a move-in incentive.
“Whether that's one month free rent, two months free rent, free parking, some are given breaks on utilities.”
He also said it’s important to look over lease agreements before signing.
“Make sure you look through it very closely to know whether your rent can go up or down based on the following year.”
