In the first quarter of 2025, Vancouver was the census metropolitan area (CMA) with the highest average asking rent for a two-bedroom apartment, at $3,170, followed by Toronto ($2,690), Victoria ($2,680) and Ottawa ($2,490). By comparison, Montréal ranked 17th, with an average asking rent of $1,930. Smaller CMAs in Quebec recorded the lowest average asking rents, including Drummondville ($1,200) and Sherbrooke ($1,250).

Because prospective renters typically face higher rents compared with long-term tenants—whose rents reflect past leases and can also be subject to rent control regulations—asking rents offer a picture of current market trends.

Asking rents in Montréal increased nearly 71% from 2019 to the first quarter of 2025

The CMAs of Drummondville and Sherbrooke, which had the lowest average asking rents in the first quarter of 2025 were those that saw the largest increase in average asking rents for two-bedroom apartments from the first quarter of 2019 to the first quarter of 2025. During this period, the average asking rent increased from $600 to $1,200 in Drummondville and from $660 to $1,250 in Sherbrooke.

Montréal also experienced a marked increase in average asking rent from 2019 to the first quarter of 2025. Starting at $1,130 in 2019, asking rent in this CMA grew by 70.8% to reach $1,930 in the first quarter of 2025.

By contrast, the CMAs with the highest average asking rents experienced slower relative growth from 2019 to the first quarter of 2025. The Toronto CMA saw overall 5.1% growth in the asking rent of two-bedroom units, increasing from $2,560 in the first quarter of 2019 to $2,690 in the first quarter of 2025. Average asking rents in Toronto declined during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, followed by an increase to reach a peak of $2,920 in the second half of 2023. In the first quarter of 2025, average asking rents subsequently decreased by 5.6% year over year in Toronto.

Vancouver followed a similar pattern as Toronto, although it experienced comparatively stronger growth. Average asking rent for two-bedroom apartments increased by 27.3% from the first quarter of 2019 to the first quarter of 2025 (from $2,490 to $3,170). In this CMA, average asking rents started increasing in early 2021 to reach a peak of $3,580 in the third quarter of 2023, then decreased by 7.8% from the first quarter of 2024 to the first quarter of 2025.

https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/250625/dq250625b-eng.htm