Housing starts stabilizing

Housing starts fell in November, according to Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation. October starts clocked in at 195,274, while only 194,014 units were built last month.

But there’s good news: housing starts have increased since July and are in the process of stabilizing, says Mathieu Laberge, deputy chief economist of CMHC.

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He adds, “Housing starts have been following a trend similar to sales on the existing home market. As sales rise relative to listings of existing homes, buyers are increasingly meeting their needs in the new home market.”

CMHC uses its starts trend measure as a complement to the monthly SAAR of housing starts. Together, the corporation can account for considerable swings in monthly estimates and obtain a more complete picture of the state of the housing market.

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The standalone monthly SAAR was 192,235 units in November, a decrease from 198,161 in October. The SAAR of urban starts decreased by 3.4% in November to 171,347 units.

Further, multiple urban starts decreased by 3.5% to 111,036 units in November, while the single-detached urban starts segment decreased by 3.1% to 60,311 units.

Throughout last month, the seasonally adjusted annual rate of urban starts increased in B.C. and in the Prairies. The rate was essentially unchanged in Quebec, but it decreased in Atlantic Canada and Ontario.

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Staff

The staff of Advisor.ca have been covering news for financial advisors since 1998.