The monthly seasonally adjusted annualized number of housing starts increased 14% in February in Canada compared to the previous month, but the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) noted declines in four provinces, the Quebec, Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland and Labrador and Saskatchewan.
Over the past two months, the country’s total number has increased from 223,176 in January to 253,468 last month. During the same period, the number fell from 38,961 to 34,542 in Quebec, a drop of 11%.
CMHC adds that in February, the actual number of housing starts increased year over year by 10% in Toronto and 82% in Vancouver, mainly due to the increase in housing starts of collective housing, but in Montreal, this number decreased by 9%.
CMHC’s chief economist, Bob Dugan, points out that February’s increase across Canada followed two consecutive monthly declines. He notes that in the context of a continuing national housing shortage, developers continue to focus on the construction of collective housing in Canada’s major centers.
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