All quiet on the Toronto front, the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) informs. The Greater Toronto Area's new home construction market showed little change in the third quarter. The seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR) of total housing starts continued to float around 31,000 homes. Single-detached homes dropped 1/3 since their peak at the beginning of 2010, but apartments maintained their 10-year average and row houses even returned to the high level of activity that was typical for the period before the recession.
Getting over the hurdle
Bricks by Esparta
The decline in sales since last February has finally reversed and returned to growth in September, with the lion's share of new home sales in high-rise developments. Toronto condos have been on the rise for the last three years, and in the third quarter of 2010, builders completed more than 5,000 condominiums. The large supply side will act as an inhibitor for future development plans.
The housing starts SAAR in Canada reached 167,900 units in October 2010. This represents a moderate decline from 185,000 units in September. Housing starts are expected to correlate with the demographic demand next year, which is estimated to be at 175,000 homes per month.
Across the country, urban starts fell 12.3% for a total of 142,400 units in October, with the largest decrease in Ontario (-24.5%), followed by the Prairies (-16.9%) and BC (-9.1%). Atlantic Canada recorded a solid 32.9% growth in urban starts.
