Rents in Hamilton grew by more than 15 per cent year-over-year in February

The average rent for an apartment in Hamilton has shot up by more than 15 per cent since last February, a new report has found.

One-bedroom units in Steeltown now cost new tenants an average of $1,828 a month, according to a national rent report from property listing service Rentals.ca.

While that is a little more than a two per cent decline from January, that number also represents a 20 per cent increase from February 2021.

Two-bedroom flats in the city are renting for an average of $2,234 - which also marks a two per cent drop month-over-month from January, but a more considerable jump of 15.8 per cent from the same time last year.

Hamilton's rental rates continue to be much higher than the national averages for both unit types, according to the report.

While rents have declined ever so slightly, the city continues to be one of the top 20 most expensive places to rent among the 35 Canadian communities included in the report.

Around the region

While Hamilton's rental rates continue to skyrocket year-over-year, some nearby communities continue to be more expensive for renters, according to the report.

In Burlington, the average price of a one-bedroom apartment is $2,220, while two-bedroom units cost $2,530.

In Guelph, one-bedroom apartments are going for an average of $2,020, while two-bedroom flats cost tenants around $2,330.

In Kitchener, the average price of a one-bedroom apartment is $1,932, while the average rent for a two-bedroom unit sits at $2,406.

Meanwhile, St. Catharines continues to be cheaper for renters, with the average price of a one-bedroom apartment at $1,631, and the average rent for a two-bedroom unit at around $1,940.

Rentals.ca's latest rent rankings, analyzed and written by residential real estate research firm Urbanation, are the average of all monthly listings from Rentals.ca and Rentfaster.ca. That includes basement apartments, condos and units in single-detached homes.

Fallon Hewitt is a reporter at The Spectator. fhewitt@thespec.com