Apartments Push Up September Starts in Kitchener

TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - Oct. 11, 2011) - Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) released September preliminary housing starts data for the Kitchener-Cambridge-Waterloo Census Metropolitan Area(1) (CMA) today. Construction began on 405 homes, a strong increase from the 145 units started in the same month last year and the highest September total since 2002.

To view the graph associated with this release, please visit the following link: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/cmhc1011kitge.jpg.

Similar to August, apartment starts, both rental and condominium, were the push behind the increase in housing activity in September. The apartments were a mix of high-rise and mid-rise buildings. Only 80 detached homes were started in September, down from the 88 units started in September 2010. Townhouse and semi-detached starts were also lower. For the first three quarters of 2011, housing starts were slightly higher. This increase was due solely to the surge in apartment construction.

"Construction of apartments increased this year due to the strong demand from students, immigrants and empty-nesters," said Erica McLerie, Senior Market Analyst at CMHC. "Slower population growth, little land available for detached home construction and fewer first-time buyers for townhomes led to the decline in starts of these housing types," added McLerie.

As Canada's national housing agency, CMHC draws on 65 years of experience to help Canadians access a variety of high quality, environmentally sustainable and affordable homes. CMHC also provides reliable, impartial and up-to-date housing market reports, analysis and knowledge to support and assist consumers and the housing industry in making informed decisions.

To view the table associated with this release, please visit the following link: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/cmhc1011kitte.jpg.

For more information, visit www.cmhc.ca or call 1 800 668-2642.

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(1) Statistics Canada defines a census metropolitan area (CMA) as one or more adjacent municipalities integrated with an urban core. A CMA must have a total population of at least 100,000 of which 50,000 or more must live in the urban core.