A recent report revealed Canada's 10 best places to be renter — and Quebec absolutely dominated the list. However, with this ranking, the best places to rent weren't necessarily the cheapest places to rent.
The study from online real estate marketplace Point2Homes examined 24 metrics spanning three categories: "housing & economy," "quality of life" and "community," which means factors such as safety, air quality, walkability, commute time and access to nature were taken into account in order to determine the results.
While renters would ideally "have it all," as Point2 put it — meaning, "the perfect blend of economic opportunity, life satisfaction and community involvement" — sometimes making ends meet comes down to plain old penny pinching. In those kinds of situations, people usually only think about one thing when deciding where to live: "How can I dish out the least amount of money each month?"
So, where in Canada and where in Quebec can tenants find the cheapest rent? The same report contains those answers.
Based on Point2's analysis of the country's 100 largest census subdivisions, using the most recent data from Statistics Canada's 2021 Census of Population, these 10 cities have the cheapest monthly rent prices in the country:
- Trois-Rivières, QC ($745)
- Saguenay, QC ($748)
- Drummondville, QC ($843)
- Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, QC ($890)
- Cape Breton, NS ($901)
- Granby, QC ($915)
- Sherbrooke, QC ($926)
- Saint-Hyacinthe, QC ($967)
- Québec City, QC ($1,000)
- Saint John, NB ($1,027)
In other words, Trois-Rivières, Saguenay, Drummondville, Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Granby, Sherbrooke, Saint-Hyacinthe and Québec City are the cities in Quebec with the cheapest rent prices in all of Canada.
Considering that there are only two cities outside the province in the top 10, it probably wouldn't pay off to leave the province in an effort to save some coins — unless, that is, you set your sights on Cape Breton, Nova Scotia or Saint John, New Brunswick.
Within the province, these spots have the most affordable housing options for renters:
- Trois-Rivières, QC ($745)
- Saguenay, QC ($748)
- Drummondville, QC ($843)
- Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, QC ($890)
- Granby, QC ($915)
- Sherbrooke, QC ($926)
- Saint-Hyacinthe, QC ($967)
- Québec City, QC ($1,000)
- Saint-Jérôme, QC ($1,029)
- Lévis, QC ($1,035)
The results do change slightly when you compare the price of rent to the cost of living. With that in mind, Wood Buffalo, Alberta takes the cake with a whopping 82.8% of renters spending less than 30% of their income on housing costs.
But Quebec still makes a strong showing, filling the next 13 positions in this category.
"When it comes to affordability, Wood Buffalo, AB is the absolute leader. [...] Unsurprisingly, given their high scores in this category, Québec cities follow suit, barely leaving room for Saint John, NB and Prince George, BC to squeeze into the top 20 cities for this metric," Point2 says on its website.
"Whether renters are drawn to the vibrant energy and liveliness of a big city or the relaxed atmosphere and the sense of community of a small town, they can probably find the perfect place that offers what they need and want most in any of Canada's provinces."
Between 2011 and 2021, Point2 says the number of renters went up 21.5%, from 4,078,225 in 2011 to 4,953,835 nationwide, as per the latest Statcan figures.
This article's cover image was used for illustrative purposes only.
