Solo senior renters in Whitby, Ajax on the rise in Ontario: rental report

While renting alone is often associated with young Millennials, it’s Boomers aged 65+ who have seen the biggest growth and now make up one-third of the market, according to research from Point2Homes.com.

In Halton Hills, more than half of solo renters are seniors (50.2 per cent) and in towns like Caledon (49.7 per cent), Burlington (47.8 per cent) and Whitby (47.1 per cent) their share hovers near 50 per cent.

Traditionally, renting alone has been associated with adults starting their careers, pursuing education, or simply enjoying the flexibility of not being tied down by property ownership.

But shifting life circumstances — such as divorce or widowhood — have also made renting alone increasingly appealing for older demographics and have contributed to the growing presence of solo seniors in the rental market.

Although millennials might outnumber baby boomers in the general population, they don’t in terms of solo renters.  In fact, more than 710,500 of the Canadians renting alone are at least 65 years old and solo renters in their mid-60s and beyond grew by nearly three per cent between the 2016 and 2021 Censuses — more than any other age group.

This trend is particularly striking in slower-paced places like Halton Hills and Caledon, where about half of the individual renters have already celebrated their 65th birthdays. Conversely, young solo renters are virtually absent here.

Halton Hills is also the only Canadian city where more than half of all solo renters are 65-plus and the changing demographics is evident in 20 Canadian cities where at least 40 per cent of those renting alone are at least 65.

Caledon and Burlington have the next highest proportion of solo seniors renting, with Whitby fifth in the rankings with its 1,485 seniors renting alone making up 47.1 per cent of the total solo renting population.

Oakville (44.5 per cent) and Ajax (44 per cent) are seventh and ninth, respectively, in the rankings.