Renters in Toronto are facing a market where the company that owns the building can matter more than the location or size of the unit. A study of roughly 1,600 apartment buildings in the Greater Toronto Area found that corporate landlords charged rents 44 per cent higher than the average for the same housing types with other landlords between 2022 and 2024. That works out to an extra $670 a month. Researchers Martine August and Cloé St-Hilaire tracked these buildings quarter by quarter, and the pattern is hard to miss: corporate owners don’t just start high — they raise rents faster than anyone else.
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This article is general information only and does not constitute professional advice. For your specific situation, consult a qualified professional.
This isn’t just a Toronto story, but it’s the most detailed picture we have in Canada so far. The data was collected from a private database that researchers paid for and downloaded quarterly. What it shows is a market where ownership type — whether a building is held by a private equity firm, a REIT, or a single-property owner — directly affects what tenants pay. That difference matters more than most renters realise. Here’s what you actually need to know.
What I tend to notice when I look at this data is how the ownership structure changes the entire business model. A single-property owner might want stable, long-term tenants. A corporate landlord has different incentives: maximising shareholder returns, increasing property value through renovations, and pushing rents to what the market will bear. The two approaches produce very different outcomes for the people living in those buildings.
What corporate landlords actually charge compared to other owners
The headline figure — 44 per cent higher — is striking, but it’s the breakdown that tells the real story. The study didn’t just compare corporate landlords to everyone else. It looked at four categories: financial firms (REITs, private equity, asset managers), family-run chains, single-property owners, and non-profits. Each group charges differently, and the gaps are revealing.
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| Owner type | Quarterly rent increase | Annualised increase | Typical premium vs. single owner |
|---|---|---|---|
| Financial (corporate) landlord | 5.04% (+$93) | 21.52% | +13.8% on same unit |
| Family-run chain | 4.99% | ~21.5% | Similar to financial firms |
| Single-property owner | 3.61% | ~15.3% | Baseline |
| Non-profit landlord | 1.0% | ~4.1% | Well below market |
To put that in concrete terms: a unit that would rent for $2,510 under a single owner would cost about $2,833 if owned by a corporate landlord — a difference of roughly $323 per month, according to the study’s authors. Over a year, that’s nearly $3,900 extra for the same apartment. And because corporate landlords tend to own large portfolios, they can absorb vacancy risk in ways that smaller owners cannot, which gives them more leverage to hold out for higher rents.
The research also showed that corporate landlords target Neighbourhood Improvement Areas — low-income and racialized neighbourhoods where existing rents are lower. The strategy is to buy in these areas, renovate units when tenants move out, and then re-rent at the maximum the market will bear. Researcher Cloé St-Hilaire described it as using properties in lower-income areas, doing renovations upon turnover, and charging the highest rent possible. The effect is that the very communities that need affordable housing are the ones most affected by the shift toward corporate ownership.
Three common mistakes renters and smaller landlords make about corporate ownership
Assuming all landlords operate the same way
Many renters assume that rent is determined mainly by location, unit size, and building age. The study shows that ownership type is a separate and powerful factor. A building in the same neighbourhood, with similar units, can cost hundreds more per month simply because of who owns it. That means checking who owns a building before you rent is just as important as checking the neighbourhood. The researchers recommend publicly accessible databases that let tenants look up ownership history, rent trends, and eviction patterns — but those databases don’t exist yet in most Canadian cities.
Thinking rent control protects against corporate pricing
Rent control rules in Ontario apply to most purpose-built rental buildings occupied before November 2018. But corporate landlords can still increase rents by the provincial guideline (typically 2–3% per year) on existing tenants. The real jump happens when a tenant moves out. Corporate landlords renovate the unit and re-rent at a much higher price — sometimes 20–30% above the previous rent. The study found that in Toronto, financial landlords earned nearly all of the rental suites that were added to the market in recent years, meaning they control the supply of new units and can set initial rents at whatever level they choose.
Believing corporate landlords always improve buildings
There’s a common argument that corporate landlords bring capital, renovate aging buildings, and improve housing quality. The research suggests a more complicated picture. Renovations do happen, but they are often tied to turnover and are used to justify much higher rents. Professor Martine August noted that these firms buy buildings and turn them into investment products, raising rents and making communities less affordable. The JustAnswer Canada Lawyers service can help tenants understand their rights around renovation-related rent increases and whether a landlord is following proper procedures — a practical step if you’re facing a big jump after a renovation notice.
How corporate landlords actually operate — and what’s coming next
Acquisition and portfolio strategy
Corporate landlords don’t buy one building at a time the way a small investor might. They acquire portfolios of buildings, often in concentrated areas. The Toronto study focused on 1,600 buildings, and the data showed that corporate owners tend to cluster their holdings in specific neighbourhoods — particularly those with lower starting rents and higher proportions of racialized residents. This gives them market power in those areas. When one firm owns multiple buildings in the same neighbourhood, it can set rents across its portfolio without worrying as much about competition from nearby buildings.
Value-add renovation and turnover pricing
The standard playbook involves what the industry calls “value-add” strategies. When a tenant moves out, the corporate landlord renovates the unit — new kitchen, new flooring, updated bathroom — and then lists it at a significantly higher rent. The study found that corporate landlords charge an average of 13.8% more for the same unit compared to a single-property owner. That premium is even higher in Neighbourhood Improvement Areas, where the gap can reach 20%. The process is straightforward: renovate, re-rent at market rate, repeat across the portfolio. For tenants, this means that even if your own rent is controlled, the turnover of neighbouring units can push up the building’s overall rent profile and change the community’s character.
Algorithmic pricing and the YieldStar case
One of the more controversial tools in the corporate landlord toolkit is algorithmic pricing software. YieldStar, a product from RealPage, suggests optimal rent prices based on local market data, including what competing buildings are charging. The US Department of Justice filed an antitrust case against YieldStar’s parent company, alleging that the software enables landlords to coordinate pricing and avoid competing on rent. The Better Dwelling report noted that the algorithm can also suggest leaving units vacant to create artificial scarcity and drive rents higher. This isn’t a Canadian-specific issue yet, but the same software is used by large landlords across North America, and Canadian tenants may be affected by the same pricing dynamics. The outcome of the US case could have ripple effects north of the border.
Policy responses and what’s on the horizon
The researchers behind the Toronto study recommend policy interventions that go beyond rent control. They suggest regulating the rental housing sector more broadly, strengthening tenant protection laws, and increasing support for social housing regardless of who owns the building. Professor August specifically criticised government programs that give funding to organisations that undermine housing affordability, arguing that the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation and the National Housing Strategy should not be supporting firms that eviscerate affordability. Tenants and small landlords watching this space should keep an eye on upcoming changes to landlord-tenant laws and any new rules around corporate ownership disclosure. If you’re unsure about how a proposed renovation or rent increase affects your rights, a eufy S330 Smart Lock can help secure your unit while you sort out the legal side — but the real protection comes from knowing the rules and having access to good legal advice.
Frequently asked questions about corporate landlords and Canadian rent
How do I find out if my building is owned by a corporate landlord? ▾
Can a corporate landlord raise my rent more than the provincial guideline? ▾
What is a Neighbourhood Improvement Area (NIA)? ▾
Are corporate landlords only a Toronto problem? ▾
What can I do if I think my corporate landlord is charging unfair rent? ▾
Do corporate landlords provide better maintenance than small owners? ▾
What the rise of corporate landlords means for the rental market ahead
The shift toward corporate ownership of rental housing isn’t slowing down. The Toronto study captured a period from 2022 to 2024, and the trends it identified — higher rents, faster increases, targeting of vulnerable neighbourhoods — are likely to continue as more buildings are bought up by institutional investors. The national vacancy rate hit 5.1% in early 2026, according to Yardi’s multifamily report, and turnover rose to 25.8%, meaning more units are turning over and being re-rented at higher prices. For tenants, the practical takeaway is to check who owns the building before signing a lease, and to understand that the corporate premium can add hundreds to your monthly costs. For small landlords, the question is whether to compete with corporate buyers or sell while prices are still high.
Remember: this article is general information only. For advice on your specific situation, speak to a qualified professional.
If this was useful, you might also want to read The Future of Condo Living in Canada: Is It Still a Good Investment?.
Sources and Further Reading
Why More Canadians Are Moving to Rural Areas for Affordable Housing — Looks at how affordability pressures are pushing people out of major urban centres, a trend that connects directly to rising rents in corporate-owned buildings.
How Rising Interest Rates Are Creating a New Wave of Mortgage Defaults in Canada — Explores the financial pressures on both homeowners and small landlords, which often leads to more properties being sold to corporate buyers.
August, M. & St-Hilaire, C. (2025). Financial landlords and rent increases in Toronto’s multifamily housing market. 🔗
The Globe and Mail (2025). Corporate property owners fueling housing rent increases in Toronto. 🔗
Better Dwelling (2025). Vacant Units, Algo Rents: Canadian Mega-Landlords Drive Rents More Than Demand. 🔗
Yardi (2026). Multifamily Report Q2 2026. 🔗
