A new report has found that Vancouver and Toronto remain the most unaffordable cities in Canada for renters, highlighting the growing financial pressure faced by households across the country.
The Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives measured affordability using “rental wage,” the hourly pay required to afford the average rent while working a standard 40-hour week and spending no more than 30 per cent of income on housing. By that calculation, a worker in Vancouver last year would have needed to earn $37.84 per hour to rent a one-bedroom apartment, and nearly $49 per hour for a two-bedroom. In Toronto, the second most expensive market, the rental wage stood at $37.66 for a one-bedroom and $44.80 for a two-bedroom.
The findings underscore the widening gap between wages and housing costs in Canada’s largest urban centres, where rising rents are pushing many families and individuals into financial strain. The report examined 62 cities nationwide and concluded that only eight of them—six located in Quebec—had rental markets where a full-time minimum wage worker could afford the average one-bedroom unit.
With about one-third of Canadian households renting, the study points to a growing national affordability crisis that has left many questioning whether stable housing is increasingly out of reach.