Canada feels the drop in international students enrollment

Good morning. At this time of year, many Canadians are looking forward to escaping south. But at Pearson International Airport in Toronto, a baggage handler almost took an unexpected trip when he was accidentally trapped inside the cargo hold of a departing plane. Passengers heard him yelling out and alerted crew members, and the aircraft returned to the gate so he could be safely helped out — uninjured, but not feeling relaxed or rejuvenated. 

Canada’s rental market finally showed signs of easing in 2025, and while that may sound like a cause for relief, the softening was not a positive economic sign. 

According to the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), vacancy rates rose to 3.1% nationally and rent growth slowed, with the average two-bedroom, purpose-built apartment increasing 5.1% to $1,550, down from faster growth a year earlier. CMHC linked the shift to a sudden change in population dynamics after years of rapid growth in new arrivals.

International students had become a major source of rental demand in many cities, particularly near college and university campuses, often competing for purpose-built rentals and investor-owned condos. As that demand dropped, rental markets that had tightened year after year began to loosen. 

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Every year, the third Monday in January is known as Blue Monday — supposedly the “most depressing day of the year,” and for 2026, that fell on Monday, January 19.

In Canada, the impact of cold, dark days, post-holiday bills and the winter blues are very real phenomena for many people. In fact, seasonal affective disorder (SAD), a periodic form of depression that is believed to be related to the lack of sunlight, affects thousands of Canadians each year.

If you’re also feeling the pinch of heightened holiday spending, rising costs of living and lingering debt, those emotional dips can feel deeper. Financial stress doesn’t just strain budgets, it has a measurable impact on health and wellbeing.

If you’re heading into retirement with a sense of dread, you’re far from alone. Worrying about money — and whether it will last — is one of the most common concerns Canadians carry into their sunset years.

If you’re lying awake at night thinking about inflation, savings, interest rates or the cost of care as you age — that's completely normal. Still, retirement isn’t only about how much you’ve saved but also about whether you’ve reached the standard financial and lifestyle benchmarks for potential retirees.

If you’ve hit a few key milestones, it may be a sign that your retirement is more secure than it may feel. Here are five clear signs you’re ready to retire well in Canada in 2026 — and why you may be able to stop stressing.