True statement: rent rises have stalled in the United States and Canada.
And there’s so much more to be said. For example:
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- Rents are stalling and even dropping in some cities. It’s most evident in homes that are priced at the top of the market.
- Whether they’ve dropped or just stalled, rents in both countries are generally much higher than they were before the pandemic.
- In the United States, rental unaffordability is at an all time high for households with the lowest incomes. It’s likely the case in Canada, too. Canada collects data about housing affordability on a different schedule than the U.S., but the rising number of people in Canada who are becoming homeless is an indication that more and more people are struggling with housing costs.
- In both countries, the supply of homes with very low rents is dropping. Vacancy rates for the lowest rent units are even closer to 0% than they were in 2023. New rental housing has come on stream, but it’s not affordable for people with very low incomes.
- In both countries, young adults aren’t expecting to own a home, ever. Unaffordable rents are creeping up the income ladder in the United States. Canadian data on housing affordability will be collected in the next Census cycle.
As unaffordability affects more and more people, the message is being delivered in novel ways. For the CBC, Andrew Chang delivers a fast moving analysis, which concludes that for people who can afford a rent of $2,400/month for a one bedroom apartment, this could be a good year to more. You can watch Andrew’s analysis at CBC: Why is rent falling in Canada’s most expensive cities? | About That
Another example comes from Harvard’s Joint Centre For Housing Studies (the JCHS), which regularly publishes an extensive analysis of the rental market in the United States. The JCHS released its latest report at a workshop/news conference with UnidosUS that featured a panel of housing experts, which was chaired by Stateline’s staff writer, Robbie Sequeira. You can watch the workshop at JCHS: America’s Rental Housing
In case these dynamic sessions pique your interest and you want to go deeper, or you have a preference for written material, here are links to detailed research reports that underpin these sessions:
In Canada at CMHC: Fall 2024 Rental Market Report
and in the United States at the JCHS: America’s Rental Housing 2024
