MONTRÉAL, QUÉBEC--(Marketwired - Jan. 10, 2017) - Housing starts in the Montréal census metropolitan area (CMA) were trending at 20,441 units in December compared to 19,469 in November according to Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CM+HC). The trend is a six-month moving average of the monthly seasonally adjusted annual rates (SAAR) of housing starts.
"End-of-year figures for 2016 reveal an overall 5-per-cent decline in housing starts, a result that is largely attributable to the marked 14-per-cent slowdown in condominium starts. The condominium segment, which had previously experienced a boom, has been going through a period of adjustment for the last two years," said David L'Heureux, CMHC's Principal, Market Analysis, for the Montréal area.
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 stand-alone monthly SAAR was 22,736 units in December, up from 16,416 in November. The significant variation in the annual rate was due to the multiple-unit housing segment, where notable fluctuations are often observed from one month to the next.
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/1082136e.pdf
Contact Information:
Catherine Leger
514-283-7972
cleger@cmhc.ca