Here’s how much rental rates in Mississauga have risen in just five years

By

Published January 23, 2020 at 6:46 pm

ovationcondos

It’s no secret that everyone is struggling to find housing in Mississauga at a time when inventory is scarce for both buyers and renters. 

The lack of available rental units–recent data suggests the vacancy rate in Mississauga sits at 0.8 per cent–has driven prices higher. Even though more rental inventory is expected to hit the city in the coming decades (402 new units are expected to be constructed during the first phase of the massive Square One District development and other rental buildings are also in the works), tenants are grappling with limited selection and accompanying high prices right now. 

According to data from the Toronto Real Estate Board (TREB), the average rate for a one-bedroom apartment in Mississauga hit $2,000 in the fourth quarter of 2018. Now, it sits at $2,157. In the fourth quarter of 2018, a two-bedroom cost $2,385. Now, a two-bedroom unit costs about $2,569.

Three-bedroom units cost $2,650 at the end of 2018. Now, they cost about $2,719.

Bachelor apartments in the city climbed from $1,617 in the final months of 2018 to $1,817 in the final months of 2019. 

Price growth is expected to continue, as a recent rentals.ca report suggests rates could climb another 8 per cent in 2020

Mississauga isn’t the only city facing a challenging rental market. 

TREB says that GTA realtors reported 6,758 condominium apartment rentals through TREB’s MLS system in the fourth quarter of 2019–and 11.8 per cent increase compared to the fourth quarter of 2018.

TREB says the number of condominium apartments listed for rent at some point during the fourth quarter was up by 35.6 per cent compared to the final quarter of 2018. 

“Strong job growth across a number of different sectors coupled with the GTA’s renowned cultural diversity continued to fuel robust population growth in 2019. Obviously, all of these people needed a place to live, with many initially pointed to the rental market. This obviously underpinned the growth in condominium apartment rental transactions,” said TREB president Michael Collins in a news release.

TREB says average condominium apartment rents in the GTA overall were up on a year-over-year basis for one-bedroom and two-bedroom units.

The average one-bedroom condominium apartment rent was $2,209 in the fourth quarter of 2019 – up 3.1 per cent compared to the fourth quarter of 2018. The average two-bedroom condominium apartment rent was up by 3.4 per cent over the same period to $2,868.

But while inventory remains low in cities such as Mississauga, TREB is seeing positive activity in the rental sector. 

“The condominium apartment rental market became progressively better supplied throughout 2019, as annual growth in the number of units listed for rent outstripped growth in rental transactions,” said Jason Mercer, TREB’s chief market analyst, in a news release.

“The increase in units listed was likely due, at least in part, to condominium apartment investor-owners listing their units for rent in response to extremely strong average rent growth in 2018 and 2019. This resulted in average rent growth moderating closer to the rate of inflation.”

While it’s difficult to say exactly how much rental rates will rise in Mississauga this year (although it’s probably safe to say that without a substantial influx of rental inventory, they’ll continue to rise), it’s interesting to look at how much rates have climbed over the past five years.

According to TREB data from 2014, a bachelor apartment in Mississauga cost $1,213 in the fourth quarter of that year. That same year, one-bedroom apartments could be leased for $1,478, two-bedroom units for $1,745 and three-bedroom suites for $1,777. 

That means that in just five years, the cost to rent a one-bedroom has grown by $679 and the cost to rent a two-bedroom has risen by $824. 

Should more be done to temper rising rental rates in Mississauga?  

insauga's Editorial Standards and Policies advertising