Toronto Rents Slip to $2,554 in September — Lowest for the Month Since 2021, but Three-Bedrooms Are Rising

The Rentals.ca and Urbanation National Rent Report for September 2026, published October 7, puts Toronto's average asking rent for apartments and condos at $2,554. That is down 0.6% from August and 1.4% from a year ago. It is Toronto's 32nd straight month of annual decline, and the lowest September rent the city has seen since 2021.

But the report is not simply more of the same. Toronto's annual decline is down to 1.4%, three-bedroom rents in the city are rising, and the authors say several conditions are lining up for a return to rent growth in Toronto and Vancouver.

The headline numbers

• Canada, all property types: $2,034 (−4.2% year-over-year), the 24th consecutive month of annual decline and 9.2% below the May 2024 peak of $2,202
• Toronto, apartments and condos: $2,554 (−0.6% from August, −1.4% year-over-year)
• Ontario, all property types: −4.8% year-over-year, the largest annual decline of any province listed
• Ontario, apartments and condos: −0.8% from August and −3.7% year-over-year; −10.3% over three years
• Condo rents nationally: $2,052 (−7.8% year-over-year), led by studio condos at $1,544 (−9.6%)
• Purpose-built rentals nationally: $2,036 (−2.7% year-over-year), the most resilient property type

Why Toronto's September dip is mostly seasonal

Toronto rents rose for four months in a row from April to July, then fell in August and again in September. The report calls this consistent with typical seasonal trends: demand builds through spring and summer and fades into the fall. Nationally, September's average was down only slightly from August ($2,035 to $2,034).

The more important signal is the year-over-year line. The report says rents in both Toronto and Vancouver have risen over the past six months. Rentals.ca and Urbanation point to three reasons Toronto and Vancouver could return to positive rent growth: construction inventory has peaked, revised data show a previously reported population decline was actually a modest increase, and both cities have less job-market exposure to tariffs than other parts of the country.

The report also says lower rents and move-in incentives are releasing pent-up demand from people who delayed forming their own households, renters who stayed with parents or roommates longer when rents were higher.

Three-bedrooms are the exception in Toronto

Toronto was the only one of Canada's six largest markets where three-bedroom rents rose year-over-year, up 1.8% to $3,586. Three-bedroom rents fell in Vancouver, Montreal, Edmonton, Ottawa and Calgary.

That fits a wider pattern in the data. Nationally, three-bedroom purpose-built apartments were the most resilient unit size (−1.4% to $2,715), while studio condos fell the most. Our read: the heaviest discounting is happening in small units, which make up much of the new condo supply, while family-sized units are holding their value better.

Where GTA rents are falling hardest

Double-digit annual declines were concentrated in markets next to the largest centres. In the GTA and nearby Ontario, the report lists:

• Scarborough: −10.9% year-over-year
• Oakville: −10.8%
• Kingston: −10.8%

North York ($2,516) remained one of the most expensive rental markets in the country outside the six largest cities. Barrie posted the largest annual increase in Canada (+17.4%), but the report notes most of that came from a single large new-build project leasing higher-priced units, so it is not a sign of broad demand in Barrie.

Shared rooms and smaller units

Shared-accommodation asking rents in Toronto averaged $1,189, down 3.6% from a year earlier. Ontario's shared-accommodation average was $1,022, essentially flat (−0.4%). The average available rental unit across the six largest markets was 852 square feet, down from 889 square feet two years ago, which the report links to a surge of new, smaller supply.

What it means for you

• Renters: This fall is still a good time to negotiate, especially on studios and one-bedroom condos, and in Scarborough and Oakville. If you need three bedrooms in Toronto, expect less room to bargain.
• Condo investors: Condo rents are down 7.8% nationally and studios 9.6%. Underwrite any purchase at today's asking rents, not 2023's. The case for a turnaround depends on the supply pipeline actually thinning out.
• Landlords of family-sized units: Three-bedroom demand is holding up in Toronto. Price to the current market rather than discounting by default.

On the ownership side, TRREB's September numbers showed a similarly cautious market, with GTA condo apartment benchmarks down 6.67% year-over-year (see our September TRREB breakdown). For how rents looked earlier this summer, see our July rent report coverage. Next up: Statistics Canada's September CPI, which includes the rent index, and the Bank of Canada's rate decision on October 28.

Sources

• Rentals.ca and Urbanation Inc., Rentals.ca October 2026 National Rent Report (September 2026 data), published October 7, 2026.
• Toronto Regional Real Estate Board, Market Watch, September 2026, released October 6, 2026.
• Bank of Canada, Policy Interest Rate (next scheduled decision October 28, 2026).

Compiled by the Real Estate HQ editorial desk from primary data releases (sources linked above) and reviewed for accuracy. Figures are asking rents for listed vacant units as reported by Rentals.ca and Urbanation on the release date; they differ from CMHC's figures, which cover all occupied purpose-built units.