The number of new residences kicking off construction across Canada trended upward last month thanks to a higher number of multi-unit and single-detached starts.
According to new data published by Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), the trend in housing starts was 257,846 units in April, a more than 4,600-unit increase from 253,226 starts in March.
The trend measure used by CMHC is a six-month moving average of the monthly seasonally adjusted annual rates (SAAR) of housing starts. The organization uses the trend measure to complement the monthly SAAR of housing starts in order to account for monthly fluctuations.
CMHC defines a housing start as when construction begins on a building where a dwelling unit is located, typically when concrete is poured for the footing around the structure or the equivalent stage when there is no basement.
Last month, the standalone monthly SAAR of total housing starts for all areas in Canada was 267,330 units, marking an eight per cent increase from 248,389 units in March. This comprises 83,247 starts for new single-family dwellings, which decreased one per cent month-over-month, and 184,086 multi-unit starts, which grew 12 per cent from March to April.
“On a trend and monthly SAAR basis, the level of housing starts activity in Canada remains historically high, hovering well above 200,000 units since June 2020 and increased from March to April,” said CMHC’s chief economist, Bob Dugan, in the report.
In April, the SAAR of total urban starts increased 10 per cent monthly from 222,926 to 245,324 units. By housing type, multi-unit urban starts jumped 14 per cent between March and April to 178,092 units while single-detached urban starts grew just one per cent during the same period to 67,232 units. Rural starts were estimated at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 22,006 units.
Canada’s three largest cities — Toronto, Vancouver and Montreal — the monthly total SAAR of housing starts equaled 24,605, 30,920 and 34,278 units in April. The latter two cities experienced a 117 per cent and 46 per cent monthly increase in SAAR starts last month, while the total SAAR of housing starts fell 38 per cent in Toronto during the same timeline.
Saskatoon reported the largest monthly increase in its total SAAR of starts, which rose 288 per cent from 1,309 starts in March to 5,074 starts in April. Between the regions CMHC analyzed in its report, the total SAAR of starts dropped the most in Thunder Bay, falling 94 per cent from 88 to five starts.
“The increase in monthly SAAR housing starts in Canada’s urban areas was driven by higher multi-unit and single-detached starts in April,” said Dugan. “Among Montreal, Toronto and Vancouver, Toronto was the only market to post a decrease in total SAAR starts, which was driven by lower multi-unit and single-detached starts.”
