Canadian Housing Starts Drop in October

On Tuesday, the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) reported that the seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR) of housing starts fell 17% in October to 232,765 units, compared with 279,174 in the previous month. The rural starts monthly SAAR estimate was 22,062 units.

Year-over-year, actual housing starts in centers with populations of 10,000 or greater decreased 3% to 19,174 units in October—down from 19,763 a year earlier. However, the year-to-date total reached 197,207 units, up 5% from the same period in 2024.

The six-month “trend” in housing starts fell 3% in October to 268,907 units. The trend measure is a six-month moving average of the SAAR of total housing starts for all areas in Canada.

In remarks accompanying the report, CMHC Deputy Chief Economist Tania Bourassa-Ochoa said:

“Both the six-month trend in housing starts and the SAAR were pushed lower in October by significantly lower monthly starts in Ontario and British Columbia. However, higher starts in markets like Montréal, Calgary, and Edmonton continue to keep national year-to-date elevated compared to the same period last year. While these results are generally reflective of investment decisions made months or even years ago, they also highlight persistent and significant regional contrasts in housing construction trends across the country.”