TORONTO APARTMENT VACANCY RATE HITS 50-YEAR HIGH

The exodus out of Toronto's city core continues. The pandemic has slammed the brakes on immigration into the city, and driven some residents, who either lost their jobs or desired more space as they work from home, out of the core. The vacancy rate of rental apartment buildings built in the City of Toronto since 2005 shot up to a 50-year high of 5.7 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2020, from 1.1 per cent the year before, reports Urbanation, a GTA rental researcher. Average rents in the city for these apartments have fallen 10 per cent to $2,337 from the year before. Active listings for condo rentals hit a record high at year end, fuelled by 46 per cent more units becoming available. Downtown markets saw rental prices plunge 17 per cent.