Toronto’s (Canada) housing market has reached a new level of desperation, as individuals consider renting half a bed for a hefty 900 Canadian Dollars (Ksh100,164) per month. Realtor Anya Ettinger brought attention to this unusual arrangement in a TikTok video , revealing a now-deleted Facebook post seeking a bed-sharing arrangement with a substantial price tag.
The deleted post, looking for an “easy-going female” to share a master bedroom with a single Queen-sized bed, claimed success from a prior Facebook arrangement. Anya Ettinger, mentioned in a Mint report, expressed disbelief, stating, “Renting out a space in your bed for 900 Canadian dollars a month? No wonder so many people are disenchanted with the current situation.”
This revelation not only highlighted the unusual trend but also pointed out the severity of Toronto’s housing crisis, solidifying its reputation as one of Canada’s most expensive housing markets. With the average cost of a one-bedroom property soaring to CAD 2,614 (Ksh290,905) a month, residents are turning to unconventional living arrangements, such as bed-sharing, to cope with escalating costs as per a report by WION.
The trend of renting half a bed appears to extend beyond Toronto, as indicated by a Moneycontrol report highlighting the rise of “hot bedding,” where individuals share a bed with strangers to mitigate rent costs.
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Moreover, a 2021 survey by the University of Technology Sydney unveiled that three percent of respondents, primarily international students in Sydney and Melbourne, resorted to hot-bedding as a creative solution to combat exorbitant rental prices.
Recent data from the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) paints a grim picture of the country’s housing market, with a 5.6% drop in home sales in October. CREA Chair Larry Cerqua, commenting on the October data, remarked,
“We’re only in November, but it appears many prospective home buyers have already entered hibernation.” Additionally, there was a 2.3% decline in new listings in October compared to September, signaling escalating challenges with housing affordability in the city.
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Toronto’s housing narrative takes an unexpected turn with the emergence of premium bed-sharing. As Canada grapples with persistent housing market challenges, the unconventional living solutions that have come to the forefront highlight the need for innovative approaches to address the growing concerns of affordability.
