According to the Rental Market Survey conducted in the spring by Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), the average vacancy rate of private buildings with three units and over stood at 2.9 per cent in April in urban centres (10,000 or
more ) of Quebec. The small change in the nominal rate compared to that recorded in the spring of 2013 (-0.2 percentage point) was not significant statistically.
"The stability of the vacancy rate stems from a proportional increase in supply and demand. On the supply side, the monthly housing starts surveys conducted by CMHC indeed testify to the arrival on the market of new rental buildings. On the demand side, the increase was certainly supported by a lesser move toward homeownership, as evidenced by resale market statistics,"
explains Kevin Hughes, Regional Economist at CMHC for Quebec.
With the exception of the Gatineau and the Saguenay areas, all Census Metropolitan Areas (CMA) remained stable from a statistical standpoint. The Québec CMA recorded the lowest vacancy rate (1.8 per cent) while the Gatineau CMA posted the highest rate (5.8 per cent). With respect to other urban areas, the survey reported an increased rate in agglomerations with 10,000 to 49,999 inhabitants and stability in agglomerations with 50,000 to 99,999 inhabitants.
The average rent for two bedroom apartments is $709. At the CMA level, it ranges between $562 and $766. In other urban areas, it is in the lower part of this range. The estimated change in the average rent for the entire province stood at 2.3 per cent in April 2014.