Highlights from the April 2023 Housing Supply Report:
- Growth in residential construction was mixed across Canada’s 6 largest census metropolitan areas in 2022.
- Current new home inventories are at historic lows even though housing starts were strong during the pandemic.
- Housing starts increased in Toronto, Calgary, Edmonton and Ottawa. Starts were stable in Vancouver and decreased in Montréal.
- New research completed by the University of British Columbia using CMHC data shows that most housing starts were built in low-amenity neighbourhoods. Apartments, however, tend to be in high-amenity areas .
- As interest rates increased, homebuyer purchasing power dropped. Prices decreased slightly in most markets.
- Apartment construction – both purpose-built rental and condominiums – continued to grow.
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The Housing Supply Report provides updated data and analysis on new housing supply in Canada’s major cities and urban areas. These insights are released bi-annually and help us to better understand supply responsiveness that contributes to price escalation and housing affordability challenges.
The analysis identifies characteristics, approaches and innovations in new housing supply that will best contribute to a supply of housing that is:
- diverse
- abundant
- affordable
These insights allow industry partners to understand the gaps between housing supply trends and future needs. This will help make informed decisions to help improve housing affordability.
Future editions will be enhanced with even more indicators and analysis.
Our Starts and Completions Survey is the primary data source for this report. The survey collects data on monthly residential construction activity.
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