A new survey reveals nearly one-third of renters are giving up over half their income to their landlord, despite rental prices across the country declining for a 14th straight month.
According to the Winter 2025 Renter Feedback Survey from Rentals.ca, over 62 per cent of renters spend 30 per cent of their income on rent, while a third report spending over half their income on rent, and 12 per cent spend 70 per cent of their income on rent.
For those aged between 25 and 34, 43 per cent report spending over half of their income on rent, while 37 per cent of renters aged 35 to 54 report about the same.
Rentals.ca spokesperson Giacomo Ladas tells 660 NewsRadio that, according to responses from 503 renters across Canada, 70 per cent of renters budget under $2,000 a month for a new apartment, but old sayings around how much to spend on rent appear not to apply anymore.
“Typically, we would see that 30 per cent was kind of that go-to number of ‘Hey, if you want to have any type of housing, try to spend around 30 per cent of your income towards rent,’ but that’s really not the case at all,” he said.
The perspective of renters across the country was also included in the survey.
Around 63 per cent of renters say rent prices have increased since the summer, and 69 per cent of respondents are most concerned about high rent prices in their online search, compared to concerns about supply, listing quality, or scams.
Ladas says while there has been an influx in rental scams, which typically target a “desperate consumer base,” the perspective of renters reveals the reality of the market.
“I do think when people are saying that 69 per cent are seeing that rental prices are the biggest challenge they face, I think that’s quite interesting when you factor that rental prices have been going down, because it shows how inflated they really are,” he said.
Statistics Canada says the annual inflation rate was 2.2 per cent in November.
Meanwhile, according to the latest monthly report from Rentals.ca and Urbanation, asking rents in Canada dropped to 3.1 per cent in November from the previous year to an average of $2,074 — the 14th straight month of annual declines.
B.C., Alberta, and Ontario had the largest rental declines, the average dropping to $2,392, $1,775, and $2,296, respectively.
Average asking rents were also down 1.5 per cent month-over-month, the largest such drop of 2025, with rents now at the lowest level since June 2023. However, average asking rents are still 3.4 per cent higher than three years ago.
With files from Lisa Grant
