Canadian Housing Starts Up 2% During 2024

Canada recorded 245,120 housing starts in 2024, up 2% year-over-year, according to data from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC).

The vast majority of housing starts (245,120) were in markets with populations of 10,000 and greater, while an estimated 17,423 were rural housing starts. Canada’s six largest Census Metropolitan Areas (CMAs) saw a combined 3% year-over-year decrease from 2023 (Table 1), driven by lower starts levels in Vancouver, Toronto, and Ottawa where multi-unit starts fell due to weak pre-construction condominium sales. In comparison, higher starts activity was recorded in Calgary, Edmonton, and Montreal.

The six-month trend in housing starts was flat (-0.7%) in December at 242,637 units, while the total monthly SAAR of housing starts for all areas in Canada decreased 13% in December (231,468 units) compared to November (267,140 units).

“Canada’s urban centers saw an uptick in housing starts in 2024 compared to last year, marking the third-highest year on record.” said Mathieu Laberge, CMHC’s chief economist and senior vice president of market insights. “While this annual increase shows some signs of progress, Canada still needs significantly higher supply growth to restore affordability in urban centers. Last Spring, we estimated Canada could build up to 400,000 new housing units annually, based on current resources devoted to residential construction.”