Housing starts double that of one year ago
Demand driven by relative affordability, mortgage, housing corporation reports
There were 64 single-detached housing starts in the Peterborough area last month compared to 32 in July 2017, according to Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) – an increase of 100 per cent.
Housing starts are the beginning of construction of a new house. The number of housing starts during a particular period is often used as an indicator of economic conditions.
CMHC is Canada’s national housing agency.
It reports housing starts regularly in an area is calls the Peterborough census metropolitan area, which includes the city of Peterborough and its four surrounding townships (Cavan Monaghan, Selwyn, Otonabee-South Monaghan and Douro-Dummer), along with the Curve Lake and Hiawatha first nations.
Despite the strength in singledetached housing starts in the Peterborough area, CMHA reports no other types of housing unit starts last month (apartments or row houses, for instance).
That’s compared to July 2017, when there were 15 housing starts in types of housing other than single-detached houses in the Peterborough area.
Nevertheless, the release states that the Peterborough area has enjoyed high levels of housing starts for 19 months now – and the trend is continuing.
Housing starts on single-detached houses have been particularly strong in this area over the first seven months of 2018, the release states.
“Demand has been driven by the relative affordability of single-detached homes compared to other Ontario census metropolitan areas,” the release states.
The average house price in June in Peterborough was $427,934, according to the Peterborough and the Kawarthas Association of Realtors.
Compare that to Oshawa, for example, where the average sell-
ing price for a house in June was $610,728 (according to the Durham Region Association of Realtors).
Oshawa saw 51 housing starts for single-detached houses last month, says CMHC, compared to 100 in July 2017 – a 49 per cent decrease, compared to Peterborough’s 100 per cent increase.
Meanwhile CMHC reports that there’s been a decline in housing starts for all types of housing across Ontario and also nationwide, in July, compared to July 2017.
Across Canada, there were 5,341 housing starts for singledetached houses in July, compared to 6,506 in July 2017 (a decline of 18 per cent).
There were 11,400 housing starts in other types of housing across Canada last month, compared to 12,468 in July 2017 (a decline of nine percent).
In Ontario, the figures were 2,048 housing starts for singledetached housing in July 2018, compared to 2,644 in July 2017 (a decline of 23 per cent).
Other types of housing starts in Ontario were at 3,901 in July 2018, compared to 4,510 in July 2017 (a decrease of 14 per cent).