Canada Housing Starts

Last Release

Oct 31, 2024

Actual

240.8

Units In

Thousand units

223.4

Frequency

Monthly

Next Release

Dec 16, 2024

Time to Release

26 Days 13 Hours

Highest	Lowest	Average	Date Range	Source
333.28 Mar 2021	90.7 Aug 1982	192.58 Thousand units	1977-2024	Canada Mortgage And Housing Corporation

In Canada, a housing start is defined as the beginning of construction work on the building where the dwelling unit will be located. This can be described in 2 ways: usually, the stage when the concrete has been poured for the whole of the footing around the structure; or an equivalent stage where a basement will not be part of the structure.

Latest Updates

Housing starts in Canada increased by 7.8% month-over-month to 240,761 units in October 2024, the highest level in three months, though still below market expectations of 242,500 units, according to the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation. The seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR) of total urban housing starts rose by 6% to 223,111 units, with multi-unit urban starts increasing by 7% to 175,705 units, and single-detached urban starts up by 1% to 47,406 units. The SAAR estimate for rural starts was 17,650 units. Year-to-date housing starts from January to October 2024 are up 12% in Montréal compared to 2023, showing recovery from historically low levels in 2023. In Vancouver, starts are down 18% from 2023, a record high year, while in Toronto, they are down 21% from the same high year for housing starts.