Margaret R. Seaton 
When GuelphToday’s newest reporter went apartment hunting, she discovered a new trend in Guelph: apartment bidding wars
As someone new to Guelph, I am looking for an apartment.
The first apartment I visited last weekend had something I had never seen in rental listings before: it had a starting offer of $1,400.
When I saw the apartment, the property manager explained that the reason there was a “starting offer” on a rental unit was because the market was so small. This would limit the large number of people expected to visit the property. She mentioned that she might not necessarily pick the person who placed the highest bid because ultimately she wanted a good tenant.
Instead of giving a firm bid, I gave a range of $1400-$1645 because I didn’t know how many other people would bid.
In March 2022, the average rent for a bedroom in Guelph was $1,679, up 8 per cent from a year ago, according to rental site Zumper.
For transparency, the auction should have been a traditional auction, where people wanting to rent can raise their hands from $1,400, explained Paul Anglin, professor of marketing and consumer studies at the University of Guelph.
Owners don’t have to choose the highest bidder. They should choose someone who won’t damage the property and pay the rent on time, Anglin said.
Hart Togman, co-founder and COO of Rent Panda, said that in some cases, tenants initiate a rent increase by offering $50 to $100 more.
“There’s a complete lack of transparency which really doesn’t help tenants find accommodations and ultimately it may increase the rent for landlords a bit but also doesn’t really show who’s passing and theirs. nature as tenants,” Togman says.
“Essentially, when vacancy rates are low, competition is high and tenants perceive competition to be high.”
In some cases, tenants initiate a rent increase by offering $50 to $100 more than the original rental price, Togman said.
There was a case where a landlord wanted to list his property for $1 on Rent Panda and then let the bidding begin, but was convinced to set it at around $1,800 for a two-bedroom condo.
Togman said he doesn’t think the auction trend will last in Guelph and return to normal.
