TD Economics brought to you by Dina Ignjatovic, Economist
Data Release: Housing starts kick off the year on strong footing
- Canadian housing starts kicked off the year on a strong note, with homebuilders breaking ground on 207k units (annualized) in January. This extends December's sharp gain, and pushes the 6-month moving average up just shy of the 200k unit mark.
- The strength in January stemmed from the multi-family sector, which was up 4.2% following a 14% gain in December. Meanwhile, single family construction was down 4.6% on the month, reversing some of December's gains.
- Regionally, Ontario remained the key driver of growth, with starts up by a whopping 25% in January. Homebuilding in the Atlantic Provinces was also up during the month while the remaining regions recorded declines. B.C. experienced the largest pullback, as home starts slid 33% from the month prior.
Key Implications
- Overall, housing starts have been hovering around the 200k mark annualized (on a trend basis) for the last six quarters, or just slightly above the current rate of household formation. However, homebuilding construction should begin to slow over the course of the year, consistent with a cooling in overall housing market activity.
- Still, the recent strength in multi-unit projects could have further room to run given the surge in building permit approvals seen over the second half of last year. This could be partly offset by single-family construction, which is already at relatively lofty levels.
- The regional story will continue to reverberate across the housing markets, with central Canada leading the way, while B.C. and the oil-rich provinces lagging behind.
Category: Mortgage Tips & Advice (31 posts)
- March 9, 2016 @ 7:37 PM
- Posted by Jennifer Gaudet
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- March 3, 2016 @ 2:20 PM
- Posted by Jennifer Gaudet
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- March 1, 2016 @ 7:56 PM
- Posted by Jennifer Gaudet
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- March 1, 2016 @ 7:54 PM
- Posted by Jennifer Gaudet
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- March 1, 2016 @ 7:46 PM
- Posted by Jennifer Gaudet
Should you give your child a boost to home ownership?
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- March 1, 2016 @ 7:25 PM
- Posted by Jennifer Gaudet
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- March 1, 2016 @ 7:22 PM
- Posted by Jennifer Gaudet
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- March 1, 2016 @ 7:18 PM
- Posted by Jennifer Gaudet
Homeowners locking into historically low mortgage rates
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- March 1, 2016 @ 7:16 PM
- Posted by Jennifer Gaudet
THAT LOW-RATE MORTGAGE COULD ACTUALLY COST YOU MORE
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- March 1, 2016 @ 7:13 PM
- Posted by Jennifer Gaudet
Check the fine print behind discounted no-frills mortgages
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- March 1, 2016 @ 7:11 PM
- Posted by Jennifer Gaudet
A peek behind deeply discounted 5-year rates.
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- March 1, 2016 @ 7:09 PM
- Posted by Jennifer Gaudet
When you’ve got “rate envy”, does it make sense to refinance?
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- March 1, 2016 @ 7:07 PM
- Posted by Jennifer Gaudet
The Mortgage Broker Advantage
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- March 1, 2016 @ 6:59 PM
- Posted by Jennifer Gaudet
People don’t fit in boxes
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- March 1, 2016 @ 6:56 PM
- Posted by Jennifer Gaudet
The biggest mortgage decision: bank or broker?
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- March 1, 2016 @ 6:53 PM
- Posted by Jennifer Gaudet
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- March 1, 2016 @ 6:52 PM
- Posted by Jennifer Gaudet
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- March 1, 2016 @ 6:46 PM
- Posted by Jennifer Gaudet
Your mortgage could be a goldmine of potential savings
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- March 1, 2016 @ 6:42 PM
- Posted by Jennifer Gaudet
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- March 1, 2016 @ 2:30 PM
- Posted by Jennifer Gaudet
Understanding Collateral versus Standard Charge Mortgages
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- March 1, 2016 @ 2:25 PM
- Posted by Jennifer Gaudet
Comparison of Collateral versus Standard Charge Mortgages
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- March 1, 2016 @ 2:21 PM
- Posted by Jennifer Gaudet
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- March 1, 2016 @ 2:17 PM
- Posted by Jennifer Gaudet
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- March 1, 2016 @ 2:13 PM
- Posted by Jennifer Gaudet
The ins and outs of pre-approvals
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- March 1, 2016 @ 2:08 PM
- Posted by Jennifer Gaudet
Pre-payment Privileges ….. speed up your mortgage pay-down!
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- March 1, 2016 @ 1:41 PM
- Posted by Jennifer Gaudet
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- March 1, 2016 @ 1:36 PM
- Posted by Jennifer Gaudet
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- March 1, 2016 @ 12:52 PM
- Posted by Jennifer Gaudet
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- February 29, 2016 @ 6:31 PM
- Posted by Jennifer Gaudet
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- April 8, 2015 @ 7:29 PM
- Posted by Jennifer Gaudet
4 Strategies That Can Help You Get PreApproved
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- February 23, 2015 @ 12:54 PM
- Posted by Jennifer Gaudet
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