TORONTO - Windsor, Ont., had the highest apartment vacancy rate in the country in October, according to new data from Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp.

The average vacancy rate in Canada's 34 major cities fell to 2.2 per cent from 2.6 per cent in the same month a year ago,

CMHC says demand is growing due to high migration levels, youth job growth and a large gap between the cost of home ownership and renting.

But CMHC chief economist Bob Dugan says rental construction and competition from the condo market could not offset growing rental demand.

Windsor was one of three Ontario cities with the highest vacancy rates in the country at 14.6 per cent, followed by St. Catharines-Niagara at 4.3 per cent and Oshawa at 4.2 per cent.

Cities with the lowest vacancy rates were Kelowna, B.C., at 0.3 per cent and Victoria, Vancouver and Regina at 0.5 per cent.

On a provincial basis, New Brunswick had the highest vacancy rate in October at 3.6 per cent, while Manitoba had the lowest at 0.9 per cent.

The rate was 3.5 per cent in Nova Scotia, 2.7 per cent in Ontario, 2.6 per cent in P.E.I., 2.2 per cent in Quebec, 1.2 per cent in Saskatchewan, 1.1 per pent in Newfoundland and Labrador and one per cent in British Columbia.