February Housing Starts Grew in the St. Catharines-Niagara CMA

TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - March 8, 2012) - New residential construction in the St. Catharines-Niagara CMA grew last month compared to February 2011 according to preliminary data released today by Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC). Housing starts grew by over half to 76 in 2012 as compared to 48 in 2011.

"Row starts in February accounted for just over a fifth of total starts, within the range that came to be expected through 2011. As land constraints and financial considerations make row homes an increasingly viable housing option we can also expect a resurgence of row starts in markets such as Thorold that had recently been dormant for that housing type," said Alexander Bonnyman, Market Analyst with CMHC.

February housing starts in the St. Catharines-Niagara CMA continued to be centred in Niagara Falls, which captured 39% of the CMA's starts. Single detached homes accounted for two-thirds of starts in February. After none being started in January, row homes have regained the proportional share of starts seen through 2011 with activity in Thorold, St. Catharines and Niagara Falls. Row construction in Thorold had been negligible since 2007.

As Canada's national housing agency, CMHC draws on more than 65 years of experience to help Canadians access a variety of high quality, environmentally sustainable and affordable housing solutions. 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.

For more information, visit www.cmhc.ca or call 1-800-668-2642. CMHC Market Analysis standard reports are also available free for download at CMHC Housing Market Information.

To view the tables associated with this press release, please visit the following link: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/stcat_tables_march.pdf

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