Return-to-office mandates are fuelling a surge in downtown Toronto condo rentals as high-income workers who moved to the suburbs during the pandemic seek part-time city housing without committing to ownership, The Toronto Star reported.

Real estate agents told that Star that, over the past six months, the full-time in-office requirements have driven a steady stream of clients in finance, tech, law and government earning high salaries and holding strong credit driven back downtown by full-time, in-person work requirements. Many bought homes outside Toronto during the pandemic and now want a weekday base in the city, but are reluctant to sell suburban properties or buy condos amid a soft market.

“The level of applicant is astounding,” Andrew Van Buskirk, a Toronto real estate sales representative, told the Star.

Rental activity in downtown Toronto accelerated through the second half of 2025, with leasing volume reaching its highest level in four years, according to the Toronto Regional Real Estate Board (TRREB). Demand has been particularly strong in the core, where agents report units are renting faster than in recent years.

“Anything downtown is moving exceptionally quickly,” Van Buskirk told the Star. “Two years ago it would take some time for units to get rented but now there are some good deals and competition building for tenants in the downtown core.”

Realtors told the Star that return-to-office policies at major employers, including Canada’s big banks and the Ontario government, are drawing workers back several days a week. Rather than uproot families or risk buying into a declining condo market, many are choosing to rent for flexibility.

“We had it a handful of times last year where the client said, ‘I work for the bank, I gotta be in three or more days a week so I have to rent,’” Tom Storey, a real estate agent with Royal LePage Signature Realty in Toronto, told the Star.

Transit-oriented downtown units are seeing the most activity, particularly near subway lines and GO Transit connections. Larger condos are in especially high demand, as renters seek more liveable space and face limited supply.

“There’s a lot more rental movement in 2025 compared to 2024 especially in transit-friendly downtown units — we’re seeing a lot of movement in those pockets,” Amrit Walia, a realtor with Royal LePage Signature, told the Star

The Star noted that TRREB figures show total rental transactions from January 2025 to September 2025 exceeded 57,700 units, up sharply from about 36,600 over the same period in 2022. In downtown Toronto’s C01 area, one-bedroom rentals rose 17.5% year over year in the third quarter of 2025, two-bedroom units increased 17.4%, and three-bedroom rentals jumped 34%.

“Basically anything in the downtown core, it’s been swallowed up,” Van Buskirk told the Star. “For some units we’re getting multiple offers, which we haven’t seen for a long time.”

Despite the increased demand, real estate professionals do not expect rents to rise significantly in the near term. Rents have fallen consistently for more than a year.

“I don’t see rental prices going up because there’s so much supply,” Walia told the Star.

Agents expect the shift toward renting rather than buying to persist into 2026, as workers wait to see whether full-time, in-person work becomes permanent and whether condo market conditions stabilize.

“Leasing has just become a much more attractive option for people for the short-term because it’s less of a commitment,” Storey told the Star.

Walia expects the trend to last for some time.

“There’s this shift happening,” Walia told the Star. “We’re seeing much more rental movement now compared to a year ago and that will continue.”