According to the results of the latest monthly survey conducted by Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), residential construction decreased this past month in Quebec’s centres with 10,000 or more inhabitants. In all, 3,545 dwellings were started in December 2010, compared to 3,696 a year earlier. However, the seasonally adjusted annual rate of starts for this same month (41,300) was higher than for the month of November (36,400).
“This increase in the rate of new home construction in Quebec was attributable to the multiple-unit housing segment, which stood out throughout 2010,” said Kevin Hughes, Senior Economist at CMHC for Quebec.
An increase was recorded in the multiple-unit (semi-detached, row and apartment) housing segment, where starts climbed from 2,526 units in December 2009 to 2,641 units a year later, for an increase of 5 per cent.
A more detailed analysis of the data indicates that rental apartment starts posted a notable decrease. In centres with 50,000 or more inhabitants, such starts dropped from 687 units in December 2009 to 614 units in December 2010. During the same period, new semi-detached housing units climbed by 17 per cent.
Single-detached home building fell by 23 per cent year-over-year in December, as all of the CMAs in the province recorded losses. Based on the survey results, the Gatineau Montréal and Québec areas registered large declines.
In 2010, starts in Quebec’s urban centres with 10,000 or more inhabitants were up by
18 per cent, compared to 2009. This result mainly reflected the increases in multi-unit
housing construction (+24 per cent) and, to a lesser extent, in single-detached home building (+5 per cent).
“This increase in the rate of new home construction in Quebec was attributable to the multiple-unit housing segment, which stood out throughout 2010,” said Kevin Hughes, Senior Economist at CMHC for Quebec.
An increase was recorded in the multiple-unit (semi-detached, row and apartment) housing segment, where starts climbed from 2,526 units in December 2009 to 2,641 units a year later, for an increase of 5 per cent.
A more detailed analysis of the data indicates that rental apartment starts posted a notable decrease. In centres with 50,000 or more inhabitants, such starts dropped from 687 units in December 2009 to 614 units in December 2010. During the same period, new semi-detached housing units climbed by 17 per cent.
Single-detached home building fell by 23 per cent year-over-year in December, as all of the CMAs in the province recorded losses. Based on the survey results, the Gatineau Montréal and Québec areas registered large declines.
In 2010, starts in Quebec’s urban centres with 10,000 or more inhabitants were up by
18 per cent, compared to 2009. This result mainly reflected the increases in multi-unit
housing construction (+24 per cent) and, to a lesser extent, in single-detached home building (+5 per cent).