| Housing starts up in February |
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| Written by HGO Staff | |
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OTTAWA (08 March 2012) - A burst of activity in Quebec and British Columbia prompted housing starts to climb in February to an annualized and seasonally adjusted rate of 201,100 units from 198,100 units in January, according to Canada Mortgage & Housing Corporation (CMHC).
"Increases in these provinces were partially offset by decreases in multiple starts in Ontario and Atlantic Canada," CMHC deputy chief economist Mathieu Laberge said in a statement. "Multiple housing starts in Québec had fallen nearly 50% in January, so February's rise can be seen as a return to a more normal rate of construction." The seasonally adjusted annual rate of urban starts increased by 3.4% to 182,800 units in February. Urban single starts rose by 3.5% in February to 67,400 units. Similarly, multiple urban starts were up by 3.3% to 115,400 units. February's seasonally adjusted annual rate of urban starts increased by 49.8% in Québec, by 10.2% in the Prairies, and by 9.6% in British Columbia. Urban starts decreased by 15.5% in Atlantic Canada and by 16.9% in Ontario. CMHC also tagged actual starts at a preliminary 12,136 units, up considerably from a revised tally of 10,783 units in February 2011. Rural starts were estimated at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 18,300 units in February.  Chart courtesy of Canada Mortgage & Housing Corporation. |
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