Can you describe an example? Generally in my high cost of living area I observe this trend pretty clearly. Pricier apartments are typically newer or nicer, cheap ones are usually at least 50 years old and unrenovated and scarcely maintained beyond what the letter of the law outlines, and these units could have identical square footage measurements, be $400 apart on monthly rent, and exist across the street from each other.
you're describing apartments or condos and I was referring to the whole building. In Montreal, the central neighborhoods are mostly made of duplex/triplex/fourplex where one unit is often occupied by the owner and the two others are rental units.
For rental apartments, the most expensive ones are both renovated and in a prime location which is often still a centennial building. Brand new buildings are most of the time outside of these locations.
