Canadian Housing Starts Jump As Condo Construction Booms

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Canadian housing starts jumped more than 12 percent last month as condominium construction soared, according to data released by Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) Wednesday.

The seasonally adjusted annual rate of housing starts increased to 150,400 units in August from 134,200 units in July.

Urban multiple starts, including condos, increased by 23.8 percent to 77,600 units, while urban single starts moved up 2.5 percent to 54,200 units in August.

"Housing starts are trending higher, reflecting improvements in both the single and multiple segments," said Bob Dugan, Chief Economist at CMHC's Market Analysis Centre. "The improvement in housing starts is consistent with our expectation of a stronger second half for 2009."

The seasonally adjusted annual rate of urban starts increased by 14.0 percent to 131,800 units in August.

August's seasonally adjusted annual rate of urban starts increased by 56.0 percent in British Columbia, by 16.1 percent in the Prairies, by 13.8 percent in Ontario, by 9.6 percent in Atlantic Canada, and by 2.5 percent in Quebec.

(Market News Provided by RTTNews)