July 2015 Housing Starts in Winnipeg

WINNIPEG, MANITOBA--(Marketwired - Aug. 11, 2015) - Housing starts in the Winnipeg Census Metropolitan Area (CMA) were trending at 4,099 units in July compared to 3,810 in June, according to Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC). The trend is a six month moving average of the monthly seasonally adjusted annual rates (SAAR)¹ of total housing starts.

"The trend in total housing starts in Winnipeg rose in July as a builders increased apartment construction. The majority of apartment construction so far this year has been for the rental market where demand has been supported by continued elevated levels of international immigration and many new migrants tend to rent upon arrival in Winnipeg," said Dianne Himbeault, CMHC's Senior Market Analyst for Winnipeg.

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 increased to 7,442 units in July from 2,910 units in June, a result of a large increase in the apartment sector. Actual housing starts also increased, totalling 657 units in July 2015 compared to 611 in July 2014. As a result, year-to-date total housing starts numbered 2,480 units, slightly more than the 2,462 units started in the same period one year prior.

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.

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¹ All starts figures in this release, other than actual starts and the trend estimate, are seasonally adjusted annual rates (SAAR) - that is, monthly figures adjusted to remove normal seasonal variation and multiplied by 12 to reflect annual levels. By removing seasonal ups and downs, seasonal adjustment allows for a comparison from one season to the next and from one month to the next. Reporting monthly figures at annual rates indicates the annual level of starts that would be obtained if the monthly pace was maintained for 12 months. This facilitates comparison of the current pace of activity to annual forecasts as well as to historical annual levels.

Additional data is available upon request

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Tables and a graph are available at the following address: http://file.marketwire.com/release/20957e.pdf