A new two-bedroom listing in Calgary now asks less than sitting tenants already pay: $1,890 against $1,930, Statistics Canada reports for the second quarter of 2026. The softness has also spread from apartments into basement and main-floor suites. Detached houses are the one segment moving the other way.
Every figure on this page carries its source and the period it describes. Where two credible sources disagree, we publish both and explain why, rather than averaging them into a number nobody can defend. This page is updated monthly.
For a two-bedroom apartment, yes. Statistics Canada’s quarterly rent release for the second quarter of 2026 puts the Calgary two-bedroom asking rent at $1,890 a month, down 6.4% year over year. In the same quarter, sitting tenants in two-bedroom apartments paid $1,930.
Calgary was one of only two metropolitan areas in Canada where this happened. Across the country, asking rent ran above paid rent. Statistics Canada named Calgary and Regina as the places where asking fell below paid. In Edmonton the two were level at $1,570.
| Calgary two-bedroom apartment | Q1 2026 | Q2 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Asking rent | $1,900 | $1,890 |
| Asking rent, year over year | -1.0% | -6.4% |
| Paid rent (sitting tenants) | not used in our September edition | $1,930 |
Source: Statistics Canada, Quarterly rent statistics, first quarter 2026 (released 9 June 2026) and second quarter 2026 (released 9 September 2026). Statistics Canada notes that Calgary’s third-quarter 2025 estimates were adjusted with modelling because of missing data from one provider.
This is the single most misread pair of figures in Canadian rental coverage, and it is the reason two credible outlets can report opposite headlines in the same week. Both are correct. They are counting different people.
| Measure | What it counts | Period | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Asking rent, two-bedroom apartment | What new listings are advertised at | Q2 2026 | $1,890, -6.4% |
| Paid rent, two-bedroom apartment | What sitting tenants pay | Q2 2026 | $1,930 |
| Occupied rent, two-bedroom | What sitting tenants pay, CMHC survey | 2025 | $1,896, +1.42% |
| Occupied rent, bachelor | What sitting tenants pay, CMHC survey | 2025 | $1,440, +5.67% |
Sources: Statistics Canada, Quarterly rent statistics, second quarter 2026, released 9 September 2026. CMHC Rental Market Survey via the Government of Alberta Regional Dashboard, 2025.
Asking rent moves first. Occupied rent moves last. A new listing has to clear against whatever supply arrived this month, so asking rents react immediately. A sitting tenant renews at or above their old rent, so the occupied average keeps drifting upward long after listings have softened. In the second quarter of 2026 that gap became visible in Calgary: the asking rent for a two-bedroom fell below what sitting tenants pay.
The City of Calgary’s Housing Trends page now shows 2026 rent figures by dwelling type that look very different from the first-quarter figures we published in September. The softness has moved from apartments into suites, while detached houses have accelerated.
| Dwelling type | Latest 2026 figure, year over year | Q1 2026, as published in our September edition |
|---|---|---|
| Detached house | +16.5% | +7.1% |
| Townhouse and duplex | +1.0% | +9.5% |
| Basement suites and main-floor units | -8.0% | -1.0% |
| Multi-residential | -9.6% | +3.8% |
Source: RentFaster data published by The City of Calgary, Housing Trends, average market rent by dwelling type, read 9 October 2026. The City states that rents for the current year are tracked quarterly but does not label which quarter the latest figures cover, so we do not assign one.
The City’s own reading: rents for smaller homes, including multi-residential properties and basement and main-floor suites, have begun to decline, while larger family-oriented housing continues to see upward pressure. The City suggests that recent increases in the supply of smaller units may be contributing to the lower rents.
If you are looking for a suite, this is the segment where the market has moved in your favour. You can browse the houses and suites currently available across Calgary, Airdrie and Chestermere, or start with northeast Calgary rentals.
Rentals.ca’s October 2026 Rent Report, published 7 October and covering September listings, puts the Calgary apartment and condominium asking rent at $1,823, down 0.1% from August and down 3.9% year over year. That was the largest annual decline among Canada’s six largest rental markets, ahead of Edmonton at 3.2%.
| Calgary, September 2026 | Asking rent | Year over year |
|---|---|---|
| Apartments and condominiums | $1,823 | -3.9% |
| Three-bedroom units | $2,376 | -0.9% |
| Shared accommodation | $810 | -4.7% |
Source: Rentals.ca, October 2026 Rent Report, September 2026 data. Nationally, the average asking rent was $2,034, down 4.2% year over year, the 24th consecutive month of annual decline.
Note the scope. In September we quoted Rentals.ca’s Calgary figure for all property types (down 4.5% in July). The October report publishes Calgary for apartments and condominiums. These are different measures, so the move from 4.5% to 3.9% is not a change in the market and we do not present it as one.
On 1 October the Calgary Real Estate Board published its September figures. In its release, CREB wrote that “higher supply levels for apartment and row homes are contributing to buyer market conditions,” “as demand is spread across more alternatives in the rental and new home markets.” Those are ownership numbers; the rental market appears in the release as one of the alternatives competing for the same buyers.
| Calgary benchmark price, September 2026 | Price | Year over year |
|---|---|---|
| Semi-detached | $685,200 | +0.09% |
| Total residential | $566,700 | -0.82% |
| Detached | $739,400 | -0.95% |
| Row | $412,400 | -5.54% |
| Apartment | $291,400 | -8.28% |
Source: Calgary Real Estate Board, Detached home sales improve in September, released 1 October 2026, and the City of Calgary monthly statistics package, September 2026. City sales were 1,650, down 3.85% year over year, with 3.93 months of supply. These are ownership benchmark prices, not rents.
The same product type is soft in both markets, again. The apartment benchmark price fell 8.28% in a year, and multi-residential rents fell 9.6% in the City’s latest figures. Detached held its value in the ownership market and is the one rental segment still rising.
Calgary apartment vacancy is quoted two ways, from the same underlying survey. Neither has been updated since our last edition.
| Source | Figure | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| CMHC, 2026 Mid-Year Rental Market Update | 5.0% | Total apartment universe |
| The City of Calgary, citing the CMHC Rental Market Survey | 5.1% | Purpose-built apartment |
Both figures describe 2025 and derive from the same CMHC survey. The difference is the unit universe being measured and rounding, not a disagreement about the market.
In 2025 the highest-rent quartile ran at 6.7% vacancy and the lowest-rent quartile at 4.4%. Choice is concentrated at the top of the price range, which is also where the new supply has been built.
It depends on the segment. Calgary two-bedroom asking rent fell 6.4% year over year to $1,890 in the second quarter of 2026, and apartment and condominium asking rent was down 3.9% year over year in September 2026, which favours renters of apartments. Basement and main-floor suites were down 8.0% year over year in The City of Calgary’s latest 2026 figures. In the same City series, detached homes were up 16.5% and townhouses and duplexes up 1.0%, which favours owners of houses. The segment matters more than the city. Sources: Statistics Canada Quarterly rent statistics Q2 2026, Rentals.ca October 2026 Rent Report, RentFaster data published by The City of Calgary.
They measure two different populations. Asking rent is what a new listing is advertised at, so it moves as soon as new supply arrives. Occupied or paid rent is what sitting tenants actually pay, and it drifts upward as existing leases renew. In Calgary the two have now crossed for two-bedroom apartments: in the second quarter of 2026 the asking rent was $1,890 a month and the rent paid by sitting tenants was $1,930. Statistics Canada named Calgary and Regina as the only metropolitan areas where asking rent was below paid rent. Sources: Statistics Canada, Quarterly rent statistics, second quarter 2026; CMHC Rental Market Survey via the Government of Alberta Regional Dashboard.
Suites, yes. Houses, no. In The City of Calgary’s latest 2026 figures, average market rent for basement suites and main-floor units was down 8.0% year over year and multi-residential down 9.6%, while detached homes were up 16.5% and townhouses and duplexes up 1.0%. The City does not state which quarter these figures cover. Source: RentFaster data published by The City of Calgary, read 9 October 2026.
CREB reported that higher supply levels for apartment and row homes are contributing to buyer market conditions, as demand is spread across more alternatives in the rental and new home markets. The apartment benchmark price fell 8.28% year over year to $291,400 and the row benchmark fell 5.54% to $412,400, while detached fell 0.95% to $739,400. These are ownership prices, not rents. Source: Calgary Real Estate Board, released 1 October 2026.
Both figures are published and both are correct within their own scope. CMHC’s 2026 Mid-Year Rental Market Update reports 5.0% for the total apartment universe. The City of Calgary, citing the CMHC Rental Market Survey, reports 5.1% for purpose-built apartments. The difference is the unit universe being measured and rounding, not a disagreement about the market. We publish both rather than averaging them.
Roughly one Calgary rental in four turned over during 2025. Turnover by rent quartile was 20.7% in the lowest-rent quartile, 27.3% in the second and 27.8% in the third; the highest quartile was not reported. For an owner, turnover rather than vacancy is what costs money, because every turnover carries a vacancy gap, a make-ready cost and a re-letting cost. Source: CMHC 2026 Mid-Year Rental Market Update.
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