CITYnews halifax : Nova Scotia highest in Canada for average apartment rental rates

CITYnews halifax / By Chris Halef

According to a new report, Nova Scotia is the most expensive city when it comes to average asking rents for apartments in the country.

Rentals.ca and Urbanation released its June report which showed Nova Scotia has knocked off British Columbia for the top spot with the most expensive apartment and condo market in Canada.

The report says average asking rents for apartments in Nova Scotia rose 2.6 per cent in May to $2,343 compared to BC, which has average asking rents of $2,328.

The report notes that this increase is partly due to declining rents in BC and rising rents in Nova Scotia, adding it is also due to compositional differences between the two markets.

Studio and one-bedroom units made up 57 per cent of all listings in BC, compared to just 48 per cent for Nova Scotia, where two-bedroom and three-bedroom units are more prevalent.

The national average asking rent, went down 4.7 per cent in May from a year earlier to $2,029.