Canadian Housing Starts: Year-to-Date Trends

Year-to-date housing starts remain comparable to last year, with increased activity observed in the Prairie provinces, Québec, and Atlantic Canada, while Ontario and British Columbia have experienced declines across all housing types. The Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) released a report highlighting these trends, while emphasizing that housing start levels remain below what is needed to restore affordability. 

National Overview

As of October 2024, Canada recorded 188,567 actual housing starts year-to-date, a slight increase compared to 187,722 starts during the same period in 2023. Despite this apparent stability when considering Canadian numbers overall, housing activity continues to vary significantly across provinces and urban centres.

The six-month trend measure, which provides a broader view by averaging seasonally adjusted annual rates (SAAR), remained flat at 243,522 units in October. The total monthly SAAR of housing starts rose 8% from September to 240,761 units, showing modest growth for October.   

In Canada’s urban centres (populations of 10,000 or more), the monthly SAAR of housing starts increased by 6%, with a 7% rise in multi-unit starts (175,705 units) and a 1% increase in single-detached starts (47,406 units). Rural housing starts, meanwhile, were estimated at a SAAR of 17,650 units.

Key Trends in Major Cities

Year-to-date housing starts from January to October 2024 have risen by 12% in Montréal compared to the same period in 2023, indicating a partial recovery from historically low construction levels last year. In Vancouver, housing starts have declined by 18% year-to-date, though this follows a record-breaking year in 2023. Meanwhile, Toronto has experienced a 21% drop in year-to-date housing starts compared to 2023, which was also an exceptionally active year for new construction.

Provincial Trends

Again, the prairie and Atlantic provinces, as well as Québec, showed increases, while Ontario and British Columbia experienced drops in housing starts. 

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