CMHC: Canadian Housing Starts Trend Stable in April



OTTAWA — Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) trend measure of housing starts in Canada was 195,064 units in April compared to 196,103 in March. The trend is a six-month moving average of the monthly seasonally adjusted annual rates (SAAR) of housing starts.
While the trend for Canada remained stable in April, there were offsetting differences at the local level, notably in Vancouver and Montreal.
Condo construction is slowing down in Montreal as builders are managing inventories by channelling demand to units that have been completed but remain unsold.
The standalone monthly SAAR for all areas in Canada was 191,512 units in April, down from 202,375 units in March.
The SAAR of urban starts decreased by 4.6 per cent in April to 174,810 units. Multiple urban starts decreased by 4.0 per cent to 117,851 units in April and the single-detached urban starts decreased by 5.8 per cent to 56,959 units.