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Canada's Rent Slide Is Finally Stalling — What It Means If You Rent or Rent Out

  Published August 13, 2026 For nearly two years, "Canadian rents are falling" has been one of the safest headlines in personal finance. The August 2026 National Rent Report from Rentals.ca and Urbanation, released last week, suggests that streak may finally be running out of road — and the shift matters whether you're the one paying rent or the one collecting it. The Numbers National avg. asking rent (July) $2,037 Year-over-year change -4.0% (22nd straight monthly decline) Month-over-month change +0.2% (4th straight monthly rise) Toronto, month-over-month +1.6% to $2,577 Falling, But Not as Fast Rent is still dropping on a year-over-year basis nationally — that's now been true for 22 straight months. But the pace of the decline has been easing since it bottomed out in March, and July marked the smallest annual drop since February. On a month-to-month basis, rent has now risen for four months running, which typically happens every summer as the market hits its season...

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Stock Markets: How High Interest Rates Are Hurting Bay Street

                                                    

Bay Street, the financial heart of Canada, is facing a tough challenge as interest rates rise and stock sales slow down. The Bank of Canada has raised its key interest rate four times since July 2020, reaching 1.75% in October 2023. This has made borrowing more expensive for businesses and consumers, dampening the demand for stocks and other riskier assets.

According to data from Bloomberg, equity offerings in Canada have fallen by 32% in the first nine months of 2023 compared to the same period last year. The total value of stock sales was $23.4 billion, the lowest since 2016. The decline was especially sharp in the energy and mining sectors, which have been hit hard by lower commodity prices and environmental regulations.

Some analysts expect the slowdown to continue for the rest of the year and into 2024, as the Bank of Canada signals more rate hikes to curb inflation and cool down the overheated housing market. This could put more pressure on Bay Street firms, which rely on fees from underwriting and advising on stock sales to generate revenue.

However, not all is gloomy for Bay Street. Some sectors, such as technology and health care, have shown resilience and growth potential amid the pandemic and the economic recovery. Some companies, such as Shopify and Lightspeed, have raised billions of dollars in secondary offerings on U.S. exchanges, boosting their valuations and profiles. And some investors, such as pension funds and private equity firms, are still looking for opportunities to buy undervalued or distressed assets in Canada.

The challenge for Bay Street is to adapt to the changing market conditions and find new ways to serve its clients and attract capital. The future may not be as bright as it was before the pandemic, but it is not as dark as it may seem either.


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