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While vacancy rates for rental accommodation in the Edmonton have gone up a bit (from 1.5% in October 2007 to 2.4% in October 2008), rents still keep going up as well. Average rents for a two-bedroom apartment unit went up by 9.2% year over year, a pace more than double that of the average person's wages.
Most of the good news in the just released Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) Rental Market Report is reserved for those at the top end of the rental market, while the news for those at the lower end of the market continues to be mostly bad.
The 4.3% vacancy rate for rental condos (in which the units tend to be larger and better appointed) was almost double that of the 2.4% vacancy rate for conventional (purpose-built) rental accommodation. Increases in rents for condos were also lower than those for conventional rental accommodation.
Despite a slowing economy, condomium conversions are an important factor that contributes to keep rents high and vacancy rates quite low. CMHC found that a further 2,451 rental units disappeared between October 2007 and October 2008, due to conversions and a lack of construction of new rental units.
The October 2008 CMHC survey backs up what renters told us in the Edmonton Social Planning Council survey - things aren't getting a whole lot easier for renters with low and modest incomes.
A printed copy of the CMHC rental market report is available in the ESPC resource library. It is also available for download on the CMHC website.
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Sunday, 05 February 2012 
