Saskatoon housing starts trend lower in January

SASKATOON, SASKATCHEWAN--(Marketwired - Feb. 8, 2017) - Housing starts in the Saskatoon Census Metropolitan Area (CMA) were trending at 1,749 units in January compared to 1,912 in December, according to Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC). The trend is a six month moving average of the monthly seasonally adjusted annual rates (SAAR) of total housing starts.

"Total housing starts trended lower in January after local builders decreased production of both single-detached and multi-unit dwellings. In 2017, residential construction in the Saskatoon CMA will be constrained by relatively weak economic and labour market conditions, and by elevated inventory of completed and unsold units," said Goodson Mwale, CMHC's Senior Market Analyst for Saskatchewan.

CMHC uses the trend measure as a complement to the monthly SAAR of housing starts to account for considerable swings in monthly estimates and obtain a more complete picture of the state of the housing market. In some situations, analyzing only SAAR data can be misleading in some markets, as they are largely driven by the multiples segment of the markets which can be quite variable from one month to the next.

The standalone monthly SAAR was 1,073 units in January, down from 2,020 in December. Total actual housing starts in January declined 58 per cent from a year ago, led by the multiples sector where builders initiated 11 units compared to 73 in January 2016.

Preliminary Housing Starts data is also available in English and French at the following link: Preliminary Housing Starts Tables

As Canada's authority on housing, CMHC contributes to the stability of the housing market and financial system, provides support for Canadians in housing need, and offers objective housing research and information to Canadian governments, consumers and the housing industry.

For more information, visit our website at www.cmhc.ca or follow us on Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn and Facebook.

Additional data is available upon request

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