Asking rent average drops in Nelson, rises slightly in Trail: report

Rents down in Nelson

Photo: Wikimedia, Creative Commons

The average asking price for apartments decreased 2.3 per cent in Nelson.

The average asking rent fell across the province and the nation, but in the West Kootenay the picture wasn’t as clear.

According to the National Rent Report released Monday morning, the average asking rent for all residential properties in Canada declined two per cent in January compared to last year — the 16th consecutive month of annual rent decreases.

As of February 2026, the average rent in Nelson was $1,706 per month — according to apartments.com — for a one-bedroom apartment, which represented a 2.3 per cent decrease over the last year, around $38 less per month.

However, down Highway 3A/22 to Trail, the average asking rent increased slightly over the last year, rising by .1 per cent to $1,151 per month for a one-bedroom apartment. That sum rose to $1,401 for a two-bedroom unit, and $1,802 per month for a three-bedroom apartment.

No data was available in the report for any West Kootenay communities, nor was Castlegar or any other West Kootenay community listed in the apartments.com data.

Across Canada, average asking rents fell to $2,057, the lowest it has been in 31 months, according to the National Rent Report, which tracked data from 60 of the nation’s largest communities.

The steepest annual drop across all provinces was B.C. at 4.7 per cent.

The highest average asking rent in the nation was the community of north Vancouver at $2,469 per month. Vancouver was second at $2,650 per month.