A new Metro Vancouver rent report shows Vancouver’s unfurnished one-bedroom average rose year over year in September 2026 while most other cities saw declines.
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Vancouver rent appears to have moved in the opposite direction of much of the rest of Metro Vancouver, with an average increase for unfurnished one-bedroom units in September 2026 compared with the same month last year.
Liv.rent, which released its Metro Vancouver Rent Report on Friday, said Vancouver is the only city in the region where rent for an unfurnished one-bedroom was higher in September 2026 than in September 2025.
In Vancouver, Liv.rent reported that the average rent for an unfurnished one-bedroom rose by 3.32 per cent year over year to $2,328 per month. The increase stands out because Liv.rent found that, across the region, eight of nine cities had unfurnished one-bedroom rents below their September 2025 levels.
The report also highlights sharp differences within the region. For example, Richmond saw a year-over-year drop in rent for an unfurnished one-bedroom, falling by 12.19 per cent to $1,977, which Liv.rent described as a decrease of $277 compared with a year earlier.
Liv.rent tied the broader regional trend to month-to-month comparisons as well. It reported that average unfurnished one-bedroom rent across Metro Vancouver decreased by 3.95 per cent year over year and fell by 0.64 per cent since August, reaching an average of $2,085 per month.
For furnished units, Liv.rent said furnished one-bedroom rents in the region edged down slightly, decreasing by 0.08 per cent to $2,179. The report also noted a price gap between furnished and unfurnished units, with furnished one-bedrooms renting for $94 more per month on average.
The September comparisons include both changes from August to September and year-over-year movement, with Liv.rent reporting that for unfurnished one-bedroom units, increases from August to September were seen in North Vancouver, Vancouver, and Langley.
For furnished one-bedroom units, Liv.rent said increases from August to September were found in North Vancouver, West Vancouver, Vancouver, and Langley, indicating that Vancouver’s strength in the market extends across both furnished and unfurnished categories within the month-to-month range.
Liv.rent also broke down rent figures at the neighbourhood level inside the City of Vancouver where data was available. It reported that West Point Grey/UBC was the most expensive neighbourhood for an unfurnished one-bedroom at $2,626, while Sunset-Victoria Fraserview was the most affordable at $1,745.
On a citywide comparison across Canada, the report positioned Vancouver as the third most expensive place to rent an unfurnished one-bedroom. Liv.rent listed North Vancouver at $2,446 and West Vancouver at $2,465 as higher, while Burnaby was described as the next tier down at $2,101. The findings suggest that Vancouver’s September increase reinforces its standing among Canada’s most costly rental markets for this unit type.
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