One-bedroom units costing an average of $1,549 a month in Hamilton
The average cost of rent in Hamilton saw just the slightest decline in December - but only enough that tenants might be able to afford an extra medium coffee at their local cafe.
Single units in the city are costing renters $1,549 a month, nearly five per cent more than the going rate last year and 4.25 per cent more than November 2021, a recent report from property listing service Rentals.ca found.
The city ranked 16th in the report among the top 35 most expensive cities when it comes to one-bedroom-style living. Steeltown trails Coquitlam, B.C., where the average single unit costs renters $1,561 - making for a mere $12 difference.
Toronto and Vancouver continue to top the list, where one-bedroom units cost tenants north of $2,000.
However, the rate for a two-bedroom unit in Hamilton saw a more dramatic decrease last month, with the average cost of rent dipping by more than 12.4 per cent to $1,841 compared to the year prior.
That drop accounted for the sharpest decline seen across the country, according to the report.
By comparison, the cost to rent a two-bedroom apartment in nearby Kitchener shot up by 12.7 per cent to $1,901 in December compared to the year prior - surpassing the average Hamilton unit by $60. The city also ranked 21st out of the 35 cities when it came to the cost of a two-bedroom dwelling.
Yet again, Toronto and Vancouver held the top two spots on that list, where the average two-bedroom unit would cost tenants anywhere from $2,715 to $2,983, respectively.
However, the average rent for all property types in Hamilton saw a slight drop in December to $1,874 - a difference of just $2 when compared to December 2020.
But, the average cost of rent has still climbed by approximately $560 since December 2018, according to the report.
Rentals.ca's latest rent rankings, published with residential real estate advisory firm Bullpen Research and Consulting Inc., are the average of all monthly listings on the website.
They include basement apartments, rental apartments, condos, townhouses, semi-detached and single-detached homes.
Fallon Hewitt is a reporter at The Spectator. fhewitt@thespec.com