July Housing Starts in the St. John's Area

ST. JOHN'S, NEWFOUNDLAND AND LABRADOR--(Marketwire - Aug. 9, 2012) - Housing starts in the St. John's region increased during the month of July, according to preliminary data¹ released today by Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC). July's housing starts totalled 276 units throughout the St. John's area compared to 258 units in July 2011. Year-to-date starts are up 13 per cent to 1,207 units.

Single-detached and multiple unit construction activity were mixed throughout the St. John's area in July. There were 136 multiple units recorded versus 104 a year ago, while single-detached starts decreased nine per cent to 140 units compared to 154 last July. "Although single-detached new home construction activity continues to trend downwards, condo and basement apartment activity remain strong, with multiple unit construction showing significant gains year-to-date," said Chris Janes, senior market analyst with CMHC in Newfoundland and Labrador.

In urban centres across Canada, total housing starts recorded in July were down two per cent to 16,876 units compared to 17,230 a year ago. Single-detached starts decreased eight per cent to 6,315 units, while multiple starts increased two per cent to 10,561 units in July. In the Atlantic region, 890 new units were started compared to 1,409 during July 2011.

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.

¹ Figures for the most recent month are preliminary and subject to revisions due to corrections or updates from quarterly enumeration or sampling results.

(Ce document existe également en français)

PRELIMINARY URBAN MONTHLY HOUSING STARTS NEWFOUNDLAND & LABRADOR SUMMARY

	2012	2011		YEAR-TO -DATE
			% Change			% Change
	JUL	JUL		2012	2011
	ALL URBAN CENTRES WITH POPULATIONS > 50,000
ST . JOHN'S CMA
Single	140	154	-9.1%	691	714	-3.2%
Multiple	136	104	30.8%	516	357	44.5%
TOTAL	276	258	7.0%	1,207	1,071	12.7%
	ALL URBAN CENTRES WITH POPULATION >10,000
ALL CENTRES*
Single	158	202	-21.8%	770	853	-9.7%
Multiple	144	120	20.0%	560	414	35.3%
TOTAL	302	322	-6.2%	1,330	1,267	5.0%

Figures for the most recent month are preliminary and subject to revisions due to corrections or updates from quarterly enumeration or sampling results.

* Includes all centres with a total population of more than 10,000 (St . John's CMA, Corner Brook CA, Gander MD, Grand Falls/Windsor CA, and Bay Roberts CA)

## Indicates changes in excess of 100% which are not reported due to volatility resulting from small absolute numbers.