Greater Toronto Area REALTORS® reported 5,241 rental transactions involving condominium apartments through the TorontoMLS system in the third quarter of 2012. This result represented a three per cent increase compared to the third quarter of 2011. Over the same time period, the number of condominium apartments listed for rent increased by 18 per cent annually to 8,845.

“The high number of condominium apartment completions in the GTA in 2011 and the beginning of 2012 has been well-documented. Some of these newly completed units are owned by investors who have a longer term investment time horizon. These investors have chosen to rent their units out to generate cash flow,” said Toronto Real Estate Board (TREB) President Ann Hannah.

One-bedroom and two-bedroom condominium apartments accounted for 95 per cent of rental transactions in the third quarter. Average rents were up on a year-over-year basis for both apartment types, increasing by almost 3.5 per cent for one-bedroom units and over two per cent for two-bedroom units.

“Rental market conditions remained tight in the third quarter, but average annual rent increases were not as strong compared to most of the previous year. Growth in rental listings outpaced growth in rental transactions over the past six months. Prospective renters had more units to choose from, which led to less upward pressure on rents,” said Jason Mercer, TREB’s Senior Manager of Market Analysis.