Thunder Bay Real Estate Market Steady and Upward
THUNDER BAY – BUSINESS – Housing starts in Thunder Bay, Census Metropolitan Area (CMA) were trending at 285 units in December up from 268 units in November according to Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC). The trend is a six month moving average of the monthly seasonally adjusted annual rates (SAAR)(1) of housing starts.
“December’s mild increase in the housing starts trend in Thunder Bay is a continuation of the strengthening seen in new construction since May. A relatively strong fourth quarter, especially for singles starts, reinforced the strengthening trend,” said Warren Philp, CMHC Market Analyst.
CMHC uses the trend measure as a complement to the monthly SAAR of housing starts to account for considerable swings in monthly estimates and obtain a more complete picture of the state of the housing market. In some situations, analysing only SAAR data can be misleading in some markets, as they are largely driven by the multiples segment of the markets which can be quite variable from one month to the next.
The standalone monthly SAAR was 301 units in December up from 193 in November.
Ontario Housing Starts
Housing starts in the Ontario region were trending at 55,009 units in December, up from 54,536 units in November, according to Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC). The trend is a six month moving average of the monthly seasonally adjusted annual rates (SAAR)(1) of housing starts.
“The provincial trend in residential construction activity remained stable in December. December starts increased across the province with both single-detached and multiples construction increasing. The increased activity occurred mainly outside of the Toronto area. Annual starts for Ontario were down from 2013 as a decline in multiples in Toronto offset the gains in this segment outside of the GTA. A slow-down in Toronto condominium apartment sales in late 2012 and 2013 translated into lower starts this year,” said Ted Tsiakopoulos, CMHC’s Ontario Regional Economist.
CMHC uses the trend measure as a complement to the monthly SAAR of housing starts to account for considerable swings in monthly estimates and obtain a more complete picture of the state of the housing market. In some situations, analysing only SAAR data can be misleading in some markets, as they are largely driven by the multiples segment of the markets which can be quite variable from one month to the next.
The SAAR of total urban housing starts was 57,049 units in December, up from 55,925 units in November. Three quarters of Ontario urban centers posted increases in December.
For 2014, Ontario raw urban starts were four per cent below levels in 2013. Single-detached starts were marginally higher, while multi-family home construction which includes semi-detached, row and apartment units declined by seven per cent from 2013.
