The annual pace of housing starts across Canada declined 17% in October from September of this year.
Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. (CMHC), the federal housing agency, said the annual rate of housing starts totaled 232,765 units in October, down from 279,174 in September.
The drop came as the number of starts in Toronto and Vancouver fell significantly, said CMHC. Those declines were partially offset by higher starts in Montreal, Calgary and Edmonton.
Actual housing starts in Canadian centres with a population of 10,000 or greater were down 3% year-over-year, totalling 19,174 units compared with 19,763 units a year earlier.
There were 36% fewer housing starts in Vancouver during October, while Toronto’s housing starts declined 42% year-over-year.
Canada’s housing market has been cooling along with the broader economy as U.S. tariffs bite and the labour market softens.
Additionally, interest rates remain elevated across Canada, keeping many would-be homebuyers on the sidelines.
The Liberal government’s 2025 budget tabled on Nov. 4 promised to spend $25 billion on housing over the next five years.
It called attention to CMHC’s estimate that 430,000 to 480,000 new housing units are needed each year over the next decade to help restore affordability in Canada.
That estimate is about double the current pace of home construction across the nation.
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