Canadian Housing Starts Trend Held Steady in November

OTTAWA — Housing starts are on track to have moderated in 2016 compared to 2015 in most centres where CMHC’s Housing Market Assessment detected overbuilding.
The trend measure of housing starts in Canada was 199,135 units in November compared to 199,641 in October. The trend is a six-month moving average of the monthly seasonally adjusted annual rates (SAAR) of housing starts.
CMHC uses the trend measure as a complement to the monthly SAAR of housing starts to account for considerable swings in monthly estimates and obtain a more complete picture of the state of Canada’s housing market. In some situations analyzing only SAAR data can be misleading, as they are largely driven by the multi-unit segment of the market which can vary significantly from one month to the next.
Other notable November data:

• The standalone monthly SAAR for all areas in Canada was 183,989 units in November, down from 192,297 units in October.
• The SAAR of urban starts decreased by 5.0 per cent in November to 166,828 units.
• Multiple urban starts decreased by 7.7 per cent to 105,915 units in November.
• Single-detached urban starts held steady at 60,913 units.
• Rural starts were estimated at a SAAR of 17,161 units.
• Regionally, the SAAR of urban starts decreased in Ontario, Quebec and in Atlantic Canada, but increased in British Columbia and in the Prairies.

To view preliminary data, click here.