August 2016 Housing Starts in Ottawa

OTTAWA, ONTARIO--(Marketwired - Sept. 8, 2016) - Housing starts in the Ottawa Census Metropolitan Area (CMA) were trending at 4,869 units in August compared to 4,461 units in July 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 housing starts.

"Housing starts trended up in August mostly due to the continued strength of row starts. So far this year, growth in this dwelling has more than offset the decline in apartment starts," said Anne-Marie Shaker, CMHC's Senior Market Analyst for Ottawa. "The lower average price of rows compared to other multi-unit dwellings, and their relative spaciousness, is appealing to many households looking for larger yet relatively affordable homes."

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, analysing 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 multiples segment includes apartments, rows and semi-detached homes.

In Ottawa, the monthly SAAR measure was 5,624 in August, up from 4,469 in July due to an increase in low-rise starts led mostly by rows, which came in at almost double their July level.

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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To view the graph and tables associated with this release, please visit the following link: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/1068703e.pdf