New Brunswick Housing Starts Trended Up in May


HALIFAX, NEW BRUNSWICK--(Marketwired - June 8, 2016) - Housing starts in New Brunswick's urban centres were trending at 1,247 units in May compared to 1,157 in April according to Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC). The trend is a six month moving average of the monthly seasonally adjusted annual rates (SAAR) of housing starts.

"After a slow start to the year, residential construction picked up during the month of May," said Michael Edwards, Senior Market Analyst with CMHC's Atlantic Market Analysis Centre. "Fredericton posted the largest increase, however most urban centres saw positive growth during the month" added Edwards.

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 standalone monthly SAAR was 2,427 units in May, up from 1,256 in April.

Preliminary Housing Starts data is also available in English and French at the following link: Preliminary Housing Starts Tables

As Canada's authority on housing, CMHC contributes to the stability of the housing market and financial system, provides support for Canadians in housing need, and offers objective housing research and information to Canadian governments, consumers and the housing industry.

For more information, visit our website at www.cmhc.ca or follow us on Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn and Facebook.

Additional data is available upon request.

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Tables and a graph are available at the following address: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/1058124_NB_ENG.pdf

Contact Information:

Media Contact:
Patricia Montreuil
506-851-2229
Cell: 506-875-8895
pmontreu@cmhc.ca