According to a report Thursday from Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), the trend measure of housing starts in Canada was 183,959 units in June compared to 179,908 in May. The trend is a six-month moving average of the monthly seasonally adjusted annual rates (SAAR) of housing starts.
“The trend in housing starts increased this month as multiple starts trended upward, offsetting a downward trend in single-detached home starts,” said Bob Dugan, CMHC’s Chief Economist. “The rise in the trend of multiple starts reflects a 53 percent increase in seasonally adjusted multiple starts from February to June 2015. Seasonally adjusted multiple starts are at their highest level since September 2012, but are expected to moderate over the coming months.”
The standalone monthly SAAR was 202,818 units in June, up from 196,981 units in May. The SAAR of urban starts increased by 3.2 per cent in June to 188,720 units. Multi-unit urban starts increased by 3.7 per cent to 130,933 units in June, while the single-detached urban starts segment increased by 2.0 per cent to 57,787 units.