One month does not a trend make.

However, after seven consecutive months of rent drops in Kelowna, April saw a bit of a bump, according to figures from Zumper, the online platform that lists apartments for rent and generates the monthly Canadian Rental Report.

After the median monthly rent on a typical one-bedroom apartment in the city peaked at $2,010 in August 2024, it's been on the slide to $1,910 in January and $1,850 in March.

But, last month the median crept up to $1,880.

It's a similar story for a two-bedroom apartment, which was at a record high of $2,700 in September 2023 before skidding to $2,250 in March and then lifting to $2,290 in April.

Photo credit: ZumperRents for both one and two bedroom apartments in Kelowna were slightly higher in April.

The easing of rents recently was seen as a good news story, some relief in an unaffordable market.

The rent declines were largely because the Kelowna market is being flooded with apartments.

A joint effort by Canada Mortgage & Housing Corporation and the City of Kelowna offered developers who build rental apartment buildings preferential financing, tax breaks, expedited approvals, additional density and fewer parking provisions.

That's largely shown up as the proliferation of 6-storey apartment buildings around town.

With so much choice, potential renters could be choosy and landlords had to sharpen their pencils and drop rents to land tenants.

That's also why Kelowna's seeing a raft of one-and-two-months-free-rent deals out there for tenants willing to sign a 14-month lease.

While new apartments may still be expensive to rent, the increased volume creates a supply and demand ripple effect.

People that were renting a cheaper place may opt for a more expensive one with an incentive.

That opens up that cheaper place for someone who's been living with their parents or roommates that want a place of their own.

Photo credit: ZumperA lot of new apartment buildings have been constructed in Kelowna in the last few years.

The vacancy rate in Kelowna in 2023 was 1.3%, meaning for every 100 apartments in the city any given month, only 1.3 of them were available for rent.

The vacancy rate is now estimated to be around 5% or 6%, so there's much more availability.

As such, April's little uptick in rent could be a blip and rents could continue to go down in the future or they may plateau and start a slow climb as the market stabilizes.

Either way, Kelowna will continue to be an unaffordable rental market for many.

People will continue to live and move here for the lifestyle and diverse economy and that will keep demand and prices high.

Even if you aren't renting an apartment or want to rent an apartment, the rent data is a prime indicator of the wider economy and consumer behaviour.

It seems to indicate that housing prices, for both renting and own a home, will remain high and demand will continue steady despite all the talk of tariffs, a soft economy and battered consumer and business confidence.

Kelowna is the 8th most expensive city in Canada to rent an apartment.

The top 7 priciest are Vancouver with one-bed rent at $2,520 and two-bed $3,450; Burnaby with $2,300 and $2,900; Toronto at $2,290 and $2,860; Victoria with $2,160 and $2,880; Halifax at $2,100 and $2,550; Ottawa with $1,980 and $2,500; and Oshawa at $1,900 and $2,120.

The cheapest places to rent in the country are Regina ($1,240 and $1,450); Saskatoon ($1,290 and $1,510); Edmonton ($1,300 and $1,590); and Quebec City ($1,350 and $1,690).