St. John's Area September Housing Starts

ST. JOHN'S , Oct. 8 /CNW/ - Urban housing starts declined during the month of September, according to preliminary data(1) released today by Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC). September's housing starts totaled 157 throughout the St. John's area versus 209 starts in September of 2008. An additional 41 starts were recorded in other urban areas across the province, for a total of 198 provincial starts compared to 268 the previous September. For the January to September 2009 period, the St. John's area posted 1,183 housing starts versus 1,288 starts during the same period last year, while provincial starts totaled 1,432 compared to 1,580 a year ago.

"September marks the second consecutive month of slower residential construction activity compared to last year's hectic pace and is in-line with expectations for the second half of 2009," said Chris Janes , senior market analyst with CMHC in Newfoundland and Labrador. "Year-to-date residential construction activity remains very healthy in historical terms, but is trending down close to ten per cent, with most of the pent-up demand carried over from 2008 now met," added Janes.

For Canada's urban centres, total housing starts fell 26 per cent with 13,024 recorded in September compared to 17,661 during September of 2008. Single-detached starts increased seven per cent to 6,741, while multiple starts of 6,283 represent a 45 per cent decline from a year ago. Throughout Atlantic Canada , there were 970 urban housing starts posted versus 1,030 the previous September, a decline of six per cent.

As Canada's national housing agency, CMHC draws on more than 60 years of experience to help Canadians access a variety of quality, environmentally sustainable and affordable homes. 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 vital decisions.

    
    ------------------------
    (1) Figures for the most recent month are preliminary and subject to
        revisions due to corrections or updates from quarterly enumeration or
        sampling results.

    For more information, visit www.cmhc.ca or call 1-800-668-2642.

    (Ce document existe également en français)

    -------------------------------------------------------------------------
    -------------------------------------------------------------------------
                   PRELIMINARY URBAN MONTHLY HOUSING STARTS
                       NEWFOUNDLAND & LABRADOR SUMMARY
    -------------------------------------------------------------------------
    -------------------------------------------------------------------------
                           2009     2008              YEAR-TO-DATE
                           -------------  % Change  --------------  % Change
                           SEP      SEP              2009     2008
    -------------------------------------------------------------------------
           ALL URBAN CENTRES WITH POPULATIONS GREATER THAN 50,000
    -------------------------------------------------------------------------
    ST. JOHN'S CMA
    Single                 133      162    -17.9%     997    1,029     -3.1%
    Multiple                24       47    -48.9%     186      259    -28.2%
    TOTAL                  157      209    -24.9%   1,183    1,288     -8.2%
    -------------------------------------------------------------------------
            ALL URBAN CENTRES WITH POPULATION GREATER THAN 10,000
    -------------------------------------------------------------------------
    ALL CENTRES*
    Single                 168       207    -18.8%   1,204   1,251     -3.8%
    Multiple                30        61    -50.8%     228     329    -30.7%
    TOTAL                  198       268    -26.1%   1,432   1,580     -9.4%
    -------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Figures for the most recent month are preliminary and subject to
    revisions due to corrections or updates from quarterly enumeration or
    sampling results.

    * Includes all centres with a total population of more than 10,000.
    

For further information: Chris Janes, Senior Market Analyst - NL, CMHC Market Analysis Centre, [phone], Cell: [phone], [email protected]