March 2022 Metro Vancouver Rent Report

Metro Vancouver’s rent prices are on the rise once again, with average rent across the region up another $16 since February, at $1,856 for the month of March.

You can get the latest updates on the Vancouver rental market straight to your inbox when you subscribe to keep on top of the latest rent trends.

Let’s take a look now at the current rental costs and overarching trends in Vancouver for March 2022. Don’t forget, you can download the entire report as a one-page infographic PDF below.

Jump to the following Vancouver Rent Report sections:

Average rent across Metro Vancouver

Continuing their unrelenting upward trend, Metro Vancouver’s rental averages have climbed another $16 from February. In fact, the region has seen only one month out of the past six where prices declined on the aggregate, and that was a mere $4 drop from December to January. This month, Vancouver’s rent prices have risen even further above the $1,800 mark, at $1,856 for March. Once again, most of the major price increases came from outside Vancouver itself, where rent prices remained largely the same this month. Areas like Langley, Coquitlam and North Vancouver saw comparatively significant gains this month, particularly for unfurnished, one-bedroom units.

Month-to-month rent change

In the past, we’ve seen more volatility when it comes to the price of furnished rentals in Metro Vancouver, but unfurnished units saw more significant changes for March 2022. As per usual though, the more dramatic price action came from outside of Vancouver itself.

After a rollercoaster few months, the prices for both furnished and unfurnished units in Richmond have stabilized, with unfurnished, one-bedroom units barely budging in price (+0.39%). West Vancouver has also had a volatile start to the year, but prices for unfurnished units have fallen back to earth – down another 7.78% this month. The biggest change for unfurnished, one-bedroom units this month came from Langley, where prices rose another 14.52%, even after similar increases in February.

Average rental costs for furnished units were surprisingly stable this month. The most notable changes were a 10.30% decrease in Burnaby, and a 7.34% increase in Richmond.

In the City of Vancouver, the average rental price for one-bedroom, furnished units fell -3.77% while unfurnished units held fast (+0.39%).

Income-to-rent ratio

We gather data on renters’ income-to-rent ratio quarterly and our most recent data shows that renters in Vancouver who use liv.rent are paying, on average, 32.17% of their income towards rent.

While traditional financial advice would be to spend no more than 30% of your income on rent, this advice is perhaps not well suited to the realities of renting in cities like Vancouver.

Still, landlords and property managers should look to see that a tenant can reasonably afford rent compared to how much money they make as part of their tenant screening process.

Rent per square foot

Where’s the cheapest place to rent in Metro Vancouver by how much space you get? In March, the least expensive cities for square footage are Langley, Surrey and Coquitlam while the most expensive is, unsurprisingly, Vancouver itself.

Overall, the average rent per square foot in Metro Vancouver is $2.52 while in Toronto it’s $2.11.

Renter demographics

Our liv.rent renter demographics have seen a significant shift in recent months, with more and more renters from different age groups now using the platform. We’re now seeing a much more even spread, particularly with the recent influx of renters aged 35+. With that being said, the majority of renters that make up our community are between the ages of 25-34.

Pet-friendly rentals

We’re proud to say that liv.rent continues to be the rental platform with the most pet-friendly rentals. In February, other rental platforms had 26.00% of units available that were pet-friendly while on liv.rent, 36.00% of units were pet-friendly.

Average unfurnished vs. furnished rates

The price difference between average rent for furnished and unfurnished units is now $221 this March. At one point, furnished rentals were practically on par with unfurnished units in terms of average price – but we’re now seeing a more typical gap in the average cost of each.

City breakdown 

Metro Vancouver’s rental averages vary greatly across the region, so we’ve broken up our data by municipality/city to compare the cost of one, two, and three-bedroom rates for both furnished and unfurnished units in different areas.

• Furnished three-bedroom units in Vancouver now cost $4,999 on average for March 2022.
• Surrey is the least expensive city for unfurnished one-bedroom listings, at an average of just $1,449 this month.
• North Vancouver tops both Vancouver and West Vancouver this month for the most expensive unfurnished, one-bedroom units – at an average of $2,210.

Neighbourhood breakdown

We’ve broken down Vancouver into its individual neighbourhoods for a more complete look at the city’s rental markets. For a further breakdown of neighbourhoods in municipalities and cities outside of Vancouver, be sure to download our complete Rent Report.

Let’s take a look now at some of the latest averages from Vancouver’s many unique neighbourhoods. This month, Downtown is the most expensive place to rent an unfurnished, one-bedroom unit, at $2,327. Mount Pleasant and Fairview aren’t far behind, at $2,227 and $2,216 respectively.

Take a look at our breakdown by neighbourhood for unfurnished units in Vancouver here. For the complete report, including furnished rentals for Vancouver neighbourhoods as well as full information for other cities in Metro Vancouver, be sure to download your copy below.

Most expensive cities in Canada

Vancouver remains the most expensive place in Canada to rent in terms of unfurnished one-bedroom units, with a $1,856 average across Metro Vancouver. Average rent in Toronto remains similarly high at $1,772 this March, although Victoria takes the number two spot this month at $1,835.

Downloadable resources

Make Zoom calls fun and informative when you use the latest rental averages and trends as your virtual background.

Rental resources for B.C. renters

You can read these comprehensive guides for more information on renting in B.C. and using liv.rent to streamline your rental process.

• BC Residential Tenancy Agreement Explained
• Guide to BC Tenancy Forms
  
• The Complete User Guide To liv.rent For Landlords & Property Managers
• The Ultimate Renter’s Guide To Using liv.rent

Rethink The Way You Rent

Not on liv.rent yet? Experience the ease of digital applications & contracts, verified tenants & landlords, virtual tours and more – all on one platform. Sign up for free or download the app.

Subscribe to receive these monthly updates on the Vancouver rental market. Discover last month’s Rent Reports below:

February 2022 Vancouver Rent Report
February 2022 Toronto Rent Report
February 2022 Montreal Rent Report