Toronto housing starts increased in January

TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwired - Feb. 8, 2017) - Housing starts in the Toronto Census Metropolitan Area (CMA) trended at 39,465 units in January compared to 37,285 in December 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 housing starts.

"The total housing starts trend rebounded in January due to higher apartment starts," said Dana Senagama, CMHC's Principal Market Analyst for the GTA. "High demand and limited supply in the resale market continue to lead homebuyers to opt for new homes."

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 complete picture of the state of the housing market. In some situations, analysing 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 52,941 units in January, up from 34,477 units in December. The increase was largely the result of greater apartment starts.

The City of Toronto recorded the highest number of starts among municipalities this month, as construction began on a large number of new apartment units. Not far behind was Mississauga, which also saw a healthy number of apartment starts. This was followed by Brampton and East Gwillimbury, where construction started on a number of ground oriented units.

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.

This release is also available at www.cmhc.ca

Additional data is available upon request.

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