Housing Starts in Canada – All Areas (CNW Group/Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC))
The six-month trend in housing starts increased almost four per cent in July, coming in at 263,088 units, according to the latest figures from Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC). The trend measure is a six-month moving average of the seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR) of total housing starts for all areas in Canada.
Actual housing starts were also up four per cent year-over-year in centres with a population of 10,000 or greater, with 23,464 units recorded in July, compared to 22,610 units in July of 2024. Also posting up a four per cent rise was the year-to-date total compared to the same period in 2024, coming in at 137,875 units in the first seven months of 2025.
A similar four per cent gain was also posted in the total monthly SAAR of housing starts for all areas in Canada, which came in at 294,085 units in July, gaining on the 283,523 units that were posted for that metric in June.
Among Canada’s big three cities, Vancouver recorded a 24 per cent increase in starts in July, driven by higher multi-unit starts. Montreal posted a 212 per cent year-over-year increase in actual housing starts, driven by significantly higher multi-unit starts. And Toronto posted red ink with a decrease in multi-unit and single-detached starts driving a 69 per cent year-over-year decrease compared to July of 2024.
“Through the first seven months of the year, actual housing starts have remained above 2024 levels, primarily driven by increased multi-unit starts in the Prairie Provinces and Quebec,” said Tania Bourassa-Ochoa, CMHC’s deputy chief economist. “These persistently elevated national results are reflective of investment decisions made months or even years ago, highlighting the influence of previous market conditions and builder sentiment on current construction trends.”
