Canada’s housing starts remained largely unchanged in May, as the six-month trend in housing starts edged up just 0.8% to 243,407 units, according to data released Monday by Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation. The trend measure, which smooths out monthly volatility, underscores a steady but subdued pace of homebuilding across the country.
The seasonally adjusted annual rate of total housing starts for all areas in Canada was also essentially flat, slipping 0.2% to 279,510 units in May from 280,181 units in April. Despite this stagnation, actual housing starts in urban centres with populations of 10,000 or more climbed 9% year-over-year, reaching 23,745 units in May compared to 21,814 units a year earlier. The year-to-date total now stands at 90,767 units, up 1% from the same period in 2024.
“Growth in actual starts activity in May was once again driven by increases of single-detached homes and purpose-built rentals in Québec and the Prairie provinces,” said Tania Bourassa-Ochoa, Deputy Chief Economist at Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation. “By contrast, weak condominium market conditions in Toronto and Vancouver have contributed to significant declines in overall housing starts in these regions.”
Among Canada’s largest cities, Montreal led with an 11 percent year-over-year increase in actual housing starts, buoyed by more multi-unit projects. In contrast, Vancouver saw a 10 percent decline, and Toronto posted a 22 percent drop, both primarily due to fewer multi-unit developments.
Revisions to previous quarters’ data were modest, with net positive adjustments of 87 and 17 units in the third and fourth quarters of 2024, respectively. The latest figures highlight ongoing regional disparities, with robust activity in some provinces offset by softness in key urban markets.
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