Calgary housing starts trend declined in October

CALGARY, ALBERTA--(Marketwired - Nov. 8, 2016) - Housing starts in the Calgary Census Metropolitan Area (CMA) were trending at 10,161 units in October compared to 10,531 in September, 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 October as the pace of multiple construction declined, offsetting the gain in single-detached starts," said Richard Cho, CMHC Principal Market Analyst for Calgary.

"Demand for new homes has moderated, especially in the condo market, due to full -time job losses, slower income and population growth, and higher supply levels."

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 7,679 units in October, down from 14,246 in September. Actual housing starts in October totalled 627 units, a 42 per cent decline from 1,078 units in the same month in 2015. To the end of October, total housing starts reached 7,525 units compared to 10,909 during the corresponding period in 2015.

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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