Sales push housing starts

The recent snow is no great help, but reasonable weather in parts of February allowed Lethbridge contractors to start a healthy number of new homes.

Sixty-one starts were recorded in the Lethbridge “metropolitan area” last month, according to reports from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. Of those, 44 were in the city.

That compares with 44 homes launched over the same period in 2016. And it contrasts sharply with the 18 homes started last month in Red Deer, 15 in Grande Prairie and just three in Medicine Hat.

Added to January’s chilly totals, the CMHC says 81 starts have been recorded so far this year, with 60 of them inside city limits. While numbers continue to drop in Calgary, the agency reports a rebound in metro Edmonton.

Steady sales have triggered the increase here, officials say.

“We are seeing a rise in single-family starts this month as a result of standing inventory levels going down,” explains Angela Zuba, chief executive officer for the Lethbridge region of the Canadian Home Builders’ Association.

As builders’ “spec” homes were sold, the inventory of new, ready-to-occupy homes dropped from 187 last November to 146 in January, she says.

As well, she says, “As new community phases complete, the next ones come on line and that spurs activity.”

Most of the housing units launched this year have been single-family projects, with just eight multi-family project units begun.

Looking at the bigger picture, Zuba says builders are expecting business to be stable — or better — through coming months.

“Overall, economic reports tell us that the province is beginning to recover and with that, consumer confidence grows.”

And that will lead to more purchases from local builders.