Calgary ranks 3rd for Canada's priciest office rents

Calgary is home to the third most expensive office space rentals in Canada, with Toronto and Vancouver taking the top spots in a new report released Friday.

The third annual Most Expensive Streets for Office Space in Canada report ranked the streets with the highest office rents over the past year and includes financial, retail and government hubs — but not residential streets.

"Location is everything," said Brett Miller, president of Jones Lang LaSalle Canada, the commercial real estate firm behind the report. "As the Canadian market continues to strengthen, we are seeing that companies are increasingly willing to pay higher rents in order to be in prestigious locations."

According to the report, the numbers suggest competition to get office space is increasing across the country.

For the third year in a row, Toronto's Bay Street topped the list with asking rents for office space sitting at $68.87 per square foot.

Bay Street spans the heart of Toronto's financial district and reaches into Yorkville, a high-end shopping district.

In second place, Vancouver's Burrard Street saw average rents for office space costing $58.47 per square foot.

Last year, the street sat in third place but asking prices have increased roughly $4 per square foot since 2012.

Calgary's Second Street S.W. took third place for the first time, inching out Eighth Avenue S.W., which made the list last year.

The street is home to some of Calgary's tallest buildings and office rents run around $55.29 per square foot.

Average office rates on the most expensive streets in other cities are:

Ottawa's Albert Street, where office rents are $53.40 per square foot.

Edmonton's 101st Street N.W., where office rents are $48.19 per square foot.

Montreal's René-Lévesque West, where office rents are $44.62 per square foot.

Halifax's Upper Water Street, where office rents are $35.65 per square foot.

Winnipeg's Portage Avenue, where office rents are $35.17 per square foot.

Québec City's Laurier Boulevard, where office rents are $28.14