OTTAWA, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - Oct. 9, 2012) - Housing starts in Ottawa, Census Metropolitan Area (CMA) were trending at 7,605 units in September, according to Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC). The trend is a six-month moving average of the monthly seasonally adjusted annual rates (SAAR)1 of housing starts. The standalone monthly SAAR was 6,234 units in September up from 4,290 in August.
"The first three quarters of the year showed a definite trend increase favouring multi-family starts, which have risen by 44 per cent from the previous year. Although low mortgage rates and full-time employment gains keep supporting demand, housing prices direct consumers towards more affordable dwellings," Sandra Pérez Torres, Senior Market Analyst for Eastern and Northern Ontario.
CMHC uses the trend measure as a complement to the monthly SAAR of housing starts to account for considerable swings in monthly estimates and obtain a more complete picture of the state of the housing market. In some situations, analysing only SAAR data can be misleading in some markets, as they are largely driven by the multiples segment of the markets, which can be quite variable from one month to the next. The multiples segment includes apartments, rows and semi-detached homes.
In September, Kanata and Cumberland led the pack, capturing two-thirds of all housing construction. Almost half of total starts activity was located in Kanata, of which 74 per cent represented purpose built rental apartments. The 176-unit rental apartment building along with 51 rows provided strength to an area that has been posting negative growth in construction for the last couple of years. Along with Kanata, Cumberland had the largest volume of townhome and single-detached starts.
Preliminary Housing Starts data is also available in English and French at the following link: Preliminary Housing Starts Tables
As Canada's national housing agency, CMHC draws on more than 65 years of experience to help Canadians access a variety of quality, environmentally sustainable and affordable housing solutions. CMHC also provides reliable, impartial and up-to-date housing market reports, analysis and knowledge to support and assist consumers and the housing industry in making informed decisions.
| 1All starts figures in this release, other than actual starts and the trend estimate, are seasonally adjusted annual rates (SAAR) - that is, monthly figures adjusted to remove normal seasonal variation and multiplied by 12 to reflect annual levels. By removing seasonal ups and downs, seasonal adjustment allows for a comparison from one season to the next and from one month to the next. Reporting monthly figures at annual rates indicates the annual level of starts that would be obtained if the monthly pace was maintained for 12 months. This facilitates comparison of the current pace of activity to annual forecasts as well as to historical annual levels. |
Additional data is available upon request.
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Contact Information:
Sandra Perez-Torres
Senior Market Analyst
(613) 748-5120
sperezto@cmhc.ca
National Media Contact:
Beth Bailey
Consultant, Communications and Marketing
(416) 218-3355
bbailey@cmhc.ca