News in end use

Statistics Canada reported on Tuesday that the Canadian Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose 6.3 % year-over-year in December, following a 6.8% increase in November. Excluding food and energy, prices rose 5.3% year-over-year in December, following a gain of 5.4% in November.

The Mortgage Bankers Association reported on Tuesday that according to their latest CREF Loan Performance Survey, delinquency rates for mortgages backed by commercial and multifamily properties increased modestly through 2022 Q4. The balance of commercial and multifamily mortgages that are not current increased in December 2022 (compared to September 2022).

The National Association of Home Builders has been tracking the shortage of building materials and products since the 1990’s through a series of special questions on the survey for the NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI).

The BC provincial government announced today that it was taking action to streamline the homebuilding process. Presently, authorizations related to homebuilding in BC can require multiple provincial permit applications, which span different ministries with different processes.

Statistics Canada reported on Monday that investment in building construction fell 1.4% to $20.4 billion (CAD) in November. On a constant dollar basis (2012=100), investment in building construction declined by 2.0% to $12.0 billion.

The Canadian Real Estate Association reported on Monday that home sales recorded over Canadian MLS® Systems moved 1.3% higher between November and December 2022. The actual (not seasonally adjusted) number of transactions in December came in 39.1% below the near record high in December 2021.

Redfin reported on Friday that homes are selling at their slowest pace since April 2020. In the four-week period ending on January 8th, the typical home sold was on the market for 44 days, which in turn has led to the largest annual inventory increase on record.

The University of Michigan on Friday released the preliminary results of its Consumer Sentiment Index for January. The Index of Consumer Sentiment rose to a reading of 64.6 in January, up from of 59.7 in December. This is a month-over-month increase of 8.2% but down 3.9% year-over-year.

The US Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on Thursday that the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) declined 0.1% in December, on a seasonally adjusted basis, after increasing 0.1% in November and 0.4% in both October and September.

Redfin reported today that the median US asking rent rose 4.8% year-over-year to $1,979 in December. This is the smallest increase since July 2021. December 2022 also marked the seventh straight month in which annual rent growth slowed.