[homeles_ot-l] Multi-family housing starts are down 36 per cent

[Lynne Browne]

Hi all,

 


GOOD NEW: Housing Starts Increase in August, see
http://www.cmhc-schl.gc.ca/en/corp/nero/nere/2009/2009-09-09-0815.cfm 


 

BAD NEWS . . . in OTTAWA – For the first eight months of 2009, multi-family
starts are down 36% and single-house starts down 27%, for an overall decline
of 32 per cent. Multi-family units include apartment buildings, townhouses,
and condominiums. This contributes to a tightening rental market in Ottawa
where there is already insufficient affordable housing!

 

Lynne Browne

Coordinator, Alliance to End Homelessness (ATEH)

147 Besserer St., 2nd Floor, Ottawa, ON K1N 6A7

613-241-7913, ext. 205

www.endhomelessnessottawa.ca <http://www.endhomelessnessottawa.ca/> 

 

 

Article from the Ottawa Citizen online
http://www.ottawacitizen.com/business/Ottawa+still+building+toward+housing+b
oom+CMHC/1975808/story.html

 


Ottawa still building toward housing boom: CMHC


 By Robert Bostelaar , The Ottawa Citizen, September 9, 2009

 

OTTAWA — Despite a big drop in home construction in August, Canada Mortgage
and Housing Corp. is sticking to a prediction for a fall upswing in Ottawa.

Housing starts fell to 422 units in August from 639 in August 2008, CMHC
reported Wednesday. A lack of any apartment construction in August played a
big part in the 34-per-cent decline.

 

But a tight market for existing homes and a recent increase in permits for
new construction have analysts expecting a turnaround.

 

“While spillover demand from the resale into the new home market typically
takes time to fully materialize, Ottawa’s market looks ripe for a gradual
but healthy recovery” said senior market analyst Sandra Pérez Torres.

 

For the first eight months of 2009, multi-family starts are down 36 per cent
and single-house starts down 27 per cent, for an overall decline of 32 per
cent.

In Gatineau, housing starts slipped four per cent in August. For the year,
however, Gatineau has seen a 19-per-cent jump in new construction, with
multi-family units roughly doubling single-unit starts.

 

Across Canada, home construction increased more than expected in August as
the country’s housing market continued to rebound.

 

CHMC said housing starts increased to 150,400 units in August from 134,200
units the previous month. 

 

Most economists had expected housing starts to increase to about 139,000
units in August. 

 

“Housing starts are trending higher, reflecting improvements in both the
single and multiple segments,” said Bob Dugan, CMHC’s chief economist. “The
improvement in housing starts is consistent with our expectation of a
stronger second half for 2009.”

 

With files from Canwest News Service 

© Copyright (c) The Ottawa Citizen

 

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