Coquitlam rents the lowest in Tri-Cities

If you were looking for cheap rent in the Tri-Cities last year, your best bet was the west side of Coquitlam.

The median rent on the west side of Coquitlam was $1,400 in 2022, according to the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation’s recently published rental market survey.

The highest rents in the Tri-Cities last year were in Port Coquitlam, where renters shelled out $1,925, based on the median.

The median rent in Port Moody was slightly lower at $1,903.

Across the Tri-Cities, the median rent was $1,500 last year, about $100 cheaper than North Burnaby and $100 more expensive than Surrey.

For a one-bedroom

The City of the Arts was a bit pricier than its neighbours. The average rent for a one-bedroom apartment in Port Moody was $1,610. Port Coquitlam renters paid an average of $1,393.

Coquitlam was the least expensive, with an average rent of $1,343 for a one-bedroom apartment.

Looking for a one-bedroom apartment continued to be a trial. The report found a vacancy rate of 0.4 percent in Coquitlam and 0.5 percent in Port Coquitlam. The vacancy rate in Port Moody was listed at 0.0 percent, however that statistic is rated less reliable than other CMHC report data.

When it came to two-bedroom apartments, Port Moody renters were paying an average of $2,059 – $400 more than in Coquitlam, where renters paid an average of $1,636.

A two-bedroom unit in Port Coquitlam rented for an average of $1,963.

Across the board – including apartments and rowhouses – the average rent in Coquitlam was $1,451 in 2022, about $400 cheaper than in Port Moody.

The average rent in the City of the Arts was $1,867, however, that statistic is rated less reliable than other CMHC data.

The average rent in Port Coquitlam was $1,728.

The vacancy rate in the Tri-Cities was 0.7 percent in 2022.

The type of housing

One-bedroom apartments in Coquitlam comprised nearly one-third of all new housing added to the Tri-Cities in 2022.

In total, the Tri-Cities added 5,686 apartment and rowhouse units with the majority of that housing located in Coquitlam.

Coquitlam added a total of 3,784 new units. Slightly more than half of those new units consisted of 1,895 one-bedroom apartments. Coquitlam also added 1,553 two-bedroom units.

Port Coquitlam added a total of 1,047 new units of housing in 2022, including 446 one-bedroom units, making up 42 percent of the total.

Port Moody added 855 new units – 309 of those units, or 36 percent – were one-bedroom apartments.

Across the Tri-Cities, 152 apartments with three or more bedrooms were built in 2022. That includes 70 in Coquitlam, 30 in Port Coquitlam and 52 in Port Moody.

What’s in the pipeline?

In total, there are 6,836 units under construction in the Tri-Cities, with the biggest share on the west side of Coquitlam, where 4,890 units are being built.

In total, there are 5,896 units under construction in Coquitlam. There are 198 units on the way in Port Coquitlam and 554 in Port Moody.

Punching above their weight

Port Moody’s population was flat between 2016 and 2021, according to census data. However, in 2022 The City of the Arts added approximately 2.54 units of new housing per 100 residents, the same as Coquitlam.

Port Coquitlam added approximately 1.7 units per 100 residents.

Some of the biggest changes in the region were in New Westminster and the City of North Vancouver, which both added around 12 units of housing per 100 residents. Vancouver added 9.35 units of housing per 100 residents.

On the other end of the scale, Richmond added 1.61 units of housing and Surrey added 1.13 per 100 residents.

Related: Rents continue to climb as vacancy rate drops to ‘near-historic low’