Preliminary estimates of all area home starts across the province of Ontario grew to nearly 68,000 units in 2011, up 12 per cent from 2010, according to the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC).
All of the increase last year came from a jump in construction for multi-family housing, which includes semi-detached, row and apartment units.
Overall single-detached starts posted a mild decline in 2011, weighed down by considerably slower activity in Hamilton, Guelph and London. Condominium apartment starts in Toronto contributed the most to the increase in construction last year, with multi-family starts in some smaller centres such as Oshawa, Kingston and Greater Sudbury also showing strong growth. For the month of December, Ontario seasonally adjusted home starts rebounded back above trend levels.
“Ontario’s residential construction industry made further gains in 2011 thanks to a strong year for the multi-family segment”, said Ted Tsiakopoulos, CMHC’s Ontario Regional Economist. “Buyers and builders were encouraged to shift towards apartments, both condo and rental, due to rising home ownership costs, lower rental vacancy rates and increased investor interest. While new home construction enters 2012 with considerable momentum, activity should moderate alongside heightened economic uncertainty, slower job creation and more balanced resale market conditions.”
For more information, visit www.cmhc.ca.
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