Canadian Housing Starts Edge Higher in May

Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) is reporting that the trend in housing starts was 280,779 units in May 2021, up slightly from 278,462 units in April 2021. This trend measure is a six-month moving average of the monthly seasonally adjusted annual rates (SAAR) of housing starts. The standalone monthly SAAR of housing starts for all areas in Canada was 275,916 units in May — an increase of 3.2% from 267,449 units in April. The SAAR of urban starts increased by 1.8% in May to 254,647 units. Multiple urban starts increased by 10.9% to 190,530 units in May while single-detached urban starts decreased by 18% to 64,117 units. Rural starts were estimated at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 21,269 units.

In remarks prepared for the May release, Bob Dugan, CMHC’s chief economist said, “The national trend in housing starts remained elevated in May, registering a slight increase from April. In May, higher multi-family SAAR starts offset lower single-detached starts in Canada’s urban areas, contributing to the increase in the National trend. However, Toronto, Vancouver and Montreal starts trended lower in May, as these markets continued to moderate from the historical highs recorded in the first quarter of the year.”