Pace of housing starts edges up in November on strength in B.C., Alberta

OTTAWA -- Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. says the annual pace of housing starts edged higher last month compared with October, although there were declines in five provinces.

The national housing agency says the seasonally adjusted annual rate for November was 201,318 units, up 0.3 per cent from 200,674 units.

CMHC says the six-month moving average of monthly seasonally adjusted rates was 219,047 units, up from 218,253 units in October.

The pace of urban starts in November increased by 0.4 per cent to 188,559 units, on a seasonally adjusted annualized basis, while the rate of rural starts was estimated at 12,759 units. Within urban areas, the rate of starts for multiple-unit dwellings was up 2.3 per cent at 141,753 units, while the rate for single-detached units fell 5.1 per cent to 46,806.

Ontario was one of the provinces to see the pace of starts fall in November, dropping to 60,960 from 70,229. Other declines were seen in P.E.I., Quebec, Manitoba and Saskatchewan.

The annual pace of housing starts in British Columbia rose to 47,087 from 32,993, while the pace of starts in Alberta climbed to 25,478 from 22,862.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 9, 2019