September 2026 Metro Vancouver rent report

At a glance

• Vancouver was the only Metro Vancouver city where unfurnished one-bedroom rents rose year-over-year
  • Eight of the nine Metro Vancouver cities posted lower unfurnished one-bedroom rents than September 2025, with declines ranging from 2.19% in West Vancouver to 12.19% in Richmond. Vancouver moved the opposite way, rising 3.32% year-over-year to $2,328. Across the region as a whole, the average unfurnished one-bedroom rent decreased 3.95% year-over-year to $2,085.
• Richmond posted the steepest year-over-year decline of any Metro Vancouver city
  • Richmond’s unfurnished one-bedroom rents fell 12.19% year-over-year, from $2,273 in September 2025 to $1,996 this month, a drop of $277 and the largest decline in the dataset. Richmond’s unfurnished one-bedroom rent also fell 5.22% since August alone, the steepest month-over-month move of any city this month.
• Three-bedroom rents moved opposite one- and two-bedroom rents in most Metro Vancouver cities
  • In Burnaby, Surrey, Coquitlam, and New Westminster, unfurnished one- and two-bedroom rents both decreased since August while unfurnished three-bedroom rents increased. In Vancouver and North Vancouver, the pattern flipped: one- and two-bedroom unfurnished rents rose while three-bedroom rents fell. Furnished units showed a similar split in Burnaby and Richmond, where furnished one- and two-bedroom rents fell while furnished three-bedroom rents climbed 7.52% and 3.10% respectively.

Download liv.rent’s 2026 Canada rental market trends report for in-depth insights and forecasts on average rent prices, regional market comparisons, key economic drivers, and emerging AI trends shaping Canada’s rental landscape.

As of September 2, 2026, the Bank of Canada held its policy interest rate at 2.25%, the seventh consecutive hold. The next scheduled announcement is October 28, 2026. B.C.’s annual allowable rent increase limit for 2026 remains capped at 2.3%.

Let’s look now at the current rental costs and overarching trends in Vancouver for September 2026.

Average asking rent across Metro Vancouver

This month, the average asking rent for an unfurnished one-bedroom unit decreased 0.64% from August, settling at $2,085 per month. Since September 2025, the Metro Vancouver average for an unfurnished one-bedroom has decreased 3.95%, a drop of $86.

Planning on raising rent this year? B.C.’s annual allowable rent increase limit for 2026 is capped at 2.3%. Find out when and how to increase rent, and how to comply with provincial guidelines, by reading our updated guide to B.C. rent increases.

Rental trend

Viewed across the year so far, unfurnished one-bedroom asking rents have held in a narrow band since January while remaining below the same months in 2025. The gap against last year continued to narrow in September, down to 3.95% from 4.86% in August.

Month-over-month rent change

To better understand how rent prices have shifted across Metro Vancouver cities, here are the most significant month-over-month movements for furnished and unfurnished one-bedroom units.

Among furnished one-bedroom units, North Vancouver and West Vancouver recorded the strongest increases, while New Westminster, Surrey, and Richmond posted the most notable decreases.

Among unfurnished one-bedroom units, Langley, North Vancouver, and Vancouver increased, while Richmond recorded the sharpest decline, followed by West Vancouver and Coquitlam.

Rent per square foot

Where is the most affordable place to rent in Metro Vancouver based on the space you get? As of September 2026, the average asking rent per square foot eased 7.75% from August to $2.89. The least expensive cities for square footage are West Vancouver, Surrey, and Richmond. The most expensive are North Vancouver, Vancouver, and Burnaby.

Active listing data

We also examine detailed statistics for currently active listings on the market to see which property types and bedroom counts are most represented. For renters, these numbers show the types of units you are most likely to encounter across Metro Vancouver. For landlords, they indicate how much competition you face based on current supply.

Active listings by property type

As of September 2026, apartments were the most common rental property type on the market at 76.63% of active listings. Partial houses were the second most represented unit type this month at 13.25%, followed by houses at 6.36% and townhouses at 3.76%.

Active listings by number of bedrooms

Looking at bedroom counts, one-bedroom units were the most common listing this month at 44.97%, with two-bedroom units close behind at 44.67%. Three-bedroom units made up the remaining 10.36%.

Average unfurnished and furnished rates

Average prices for both furnished and unfurnished one-bedroom units decreased across Metro Vancouver this month. Furnished one-bedrooms decreased 0.08% to $2,179 per month, while unfurnished units decreased 0.64% to $2,085. A furnished one-bedroom currently rents for $94 more per month than an unfurnished one on average.

Looking for our full September 2026 Metro Vancouver rent report? Download your copy in the downloadable resources section for all the latest insights, including a detailed breakdown by neighbourhood.

City breakdown

Rental averages vary widely across Metro Vancouver, so we break the data out by municipality to compare one-bedroom, two-bedroom, and three-bedroom rates for furnished and unfurnished units. Highlights from this month’s findings:

• Unfurnished three-bedroom rents moved opposite one- and two-bedroom rents in six of the nine cities this month. They rose while one- and two-bedroom unfurnished rents fell in Burnaby, Surrey, Coquitlam, and New Westminster, and fell while one- and two-bedroom unfurnished rents rose in Vancouver and North Vancouver.
• Furnished one- and two-bedroom rents fell together in Burnaby, Richmond, Coquitlam, and New Westminster, and rose together in North Vancouver and Langley.
• West Vancouver‘s furnished and unfurnished one-bedroom markets moved in opposite directions this month: furnished rents rose 2.93% while unfurnished rents fell 2.69%.

The table includes a year-over-year column comparing each city’s unfurnished one-bedroom asking rent with September 2025. Eight of the nine cities sit below where they were a year ago, with declines ranging from 2.19% in West Vancouver to 12.19% in Richmond. Vancouver is the exception, up 3.32% year-over-year. The table is interactive: sort any column, or download it as an image.

Neighbourhood breakdown

We break Vancouver down by neighbourhood for a more complete picture of the city’s rental markets. For neighbourhood detail in municipalities outside Vancouver, download the complete rent report.

Among City of Vancouver neighbourhoods with available data, West Point Grey/UBC was the most expensive for unfurnished one-bedroom rentals this month at $2,626, while Sunset-Victoria Fraserview was the most affordable at $1,745.

We have added new neighbourhoods to our monthly reports that are not shown in the data below. For those additional neighbourhoods, furnished rental statistics, and neighbourhood breakdowns for other Metro Vancouver cities, download your copy of the full report in the downloadable resources section.

Most expensive cities in Canada

This September, four of the country’s five most expensive cities are in Metro Vancouver. West Vancouver claims the top spot as the most expensive city in Canada to rent in, followed by North Vancouver and Vancouver. Burlington, Ontario breaks into fourth place, with Burnaby rounding out the top five.

These insights are exclusive to our blog and give more context to each month’s rental data. Based on data sourced directly from liv.rent, these statistics provide a broader view of the current rental situation in Canada.

Renter demographics

Renter demographics span several age groups, with the largest share aged 35 to 44 at 37%, followed by renters aged 25 to 34 at 22%. Renters under 25 account for 10%, renters aged 45 to 54 account for 19%, and renters 55 and older account for 12%.

Pet-friendly rentals

liv.rent continues to be the rental platform with the most pet-friendly rentals. This September, 22% of units on other rental platforms were pet-friendly, compared with 53% of all units listed on liv.rent.

Downloadable resources

Rental resources for B.C. renters

These comprehensive guides cover renting in B.C. and using liv.rent to streamline your rental process.

• B.C. residential tenancy agreement explained
• Guide to B.C. tenancy forms
• The complete user guide to liv.rent for landlords and property managers
• The ultimate renter’s guide to using liv.rent

Data collection methodology

Our monthly rent reports use data from our own liv.rent listings, as well as data our team manually collects from other popular listing sites, covering available basement suites, apartments, condos, townhouses, semi-detached houses, and single-detached houses for each area.

When collecting this data, we exclude luxury properties listed at over $5,000, as well as rooms for rent and shared accommodation. Investing in manual data collection means we consider only the current month’s listings, since we can filter out duplicate listings and older ads that have not been removed.

Another key difference between our data collection methods and those of agencies such as the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation is that we include only current asking rent prices. Many official reports include data for entire buildings, which tends to skew numbers lower since many units are already occupied and may be rent-controlled or rented well below current rates.

As a Canadian rental platform founded and based in Vancouver, we want to provide a completely accurate depiction of the rental market in the cities we cover.

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Vancouver rent report
Ontario rent report
Montreal rent report
Calgary and Edmonton rent report