If you’ve spent the morning scrolling through apartment listings, the news today feels like a "good news, bad news" joke.
The good news? Today's reality shows the market is finally cooling down. For the first time in years, average prices for a one-bedroom have dropped to around $1,603. With more apartments sitting empty (a 3.1% vacancy rate), landlords are actually having to compete for us renters again.
The bad news? "Cheaper" is a relative term. A new study by Vivre en Ville shows that most of us are paying about $150 more per month than we were just two years ago. Even though the TAL (the provincial rental board) suggests a modest 3.1% rent increase this year, for many, the damage is already done.
We might be seeing the peak of the mountain, but for the average Montrealer, it’s still a very long way down to "affordable."