Anna Asi, M.A.

January 2011 CMHC Housing Market Report

OTTAWA, February 8, 2011 — The seasonally adjusted annual rate¹ of housing starts was 170,400 units in January, according to Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC). This is up from 169,000 units in December 2010. According to final figures, actual housing starts for 2010 totalled 189,930 units, with activity moderating towards demographic fundamentals by the final quarter of 2010.

“Housing starts moved slightly higher in January because of an increase in rural starts,” said Bob Dugan, Chief Economist at CMHC’s Market Analysis Centre. “Single-detached and multiple starts showed a moderate decline.”

The seasonally adjusted annual rate of urban starts decreased by 1.7 per cent to 146,900 units in January. Urban multiple starts moderated by 1.5 per cent in January to 82,900 units, while single urban starts moved lower by 2.0 per cent to 64,000 units.

January’s seasonally adjusted annual rate of urban starts decreased by 19.0 per cent in the Prairie Region, by 7.9 per cent in British Columbia, and by 1.0 per cent in Québec. Urban starts increased by 13.3 per cent in Atlantic Canada and by 10.3 per cent in Ontario.

Rural starts² were estimated at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 23,500 units in January.

As Canada's national housing agency, CMHC draws on 65 years of experience to help Canadians access a variety of high quality, environmentally sustainable and affordable homes. CMHC also provides reliable, impartial and up-to-date housing market reports, analysis and knowledge to support and assist consumers and the housing industry in making informed decisions.

Vancouver Prices Soared in 2010

MLS® stats show more sales, fewer property listings in November

Greater Vancouver residential home sales improved in November compared to the previous four months, with the number of sales posted on the Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) coming in slightly higher than the 10-year average for that month.

The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV) reports that the number of residential property sales in Greater Vancouver totalled 2,509 in November 2010. This represents a 7.4 per cent increase compared to October 2010 and an 18.6 per cent decline from the 3,083 sales in November 2009.

Looking back further, last month’s residential sales represent a 187.1 per cent increase over the 874 residential sales in November 2008, a 13 per cent decline compared to November 2007’s 2,883 sales, and a 6.4 per cent increase compared to the 2,358 sales in November 2006.

“Housing sales numbers were fairly typical for a November and indicate a fairly balanced market. Activity on the buyer side has been stable, with slight increases, over the last few months while the number of homes listed for sale in our region has declined each month since we reached a peak in June,” Jake Moldowan, REBGV president said.

Total active residential property listings in Greater Vancouver currently sit at 12,384, a 12.1 per cent decline from last month and a 12 per cent increase from November 2009. New listings for detached, attached and apartment properties declined 17.1 per cent to 3,030 in November 2010 compared to November 2009 when 3,653 new units were listed.

“Home values have been relatively stable over the last five months compared to the summer period when we were seeing some downward pressure on prices,” Moldowan said. “It’s the homes priced accurately for today’s market that are receiving a lot of attention and selling right now.”

The MLSLink® Housing Price Index (HPI) benchmark price for all residential properties in Greater Vancouver over the last 12 months has increased 4.1 per cent to $580,080 in November 2010 from $557,384 in November 2009. This price has remained virtually unchanged since June of this year.

Sales of detached properties on the MLS® in November 2010 reached 1,050, a decrease of 9.8 per cent from the 1,164 detached sales recorded in November 2009, and a 226.1 per cent increase from the 322 units sold in November 2008. The benchmark price for detached properties increased 5.6 per cent from November 2009 to $799,312.

Sales of apartment properties reached 1,052 in November 2010, a decline of 24.6 per cent compared to the 1,396 sales in November 2009, and an increase of 156.6 per cent compared to the 410 sales in November 2008.The benchmark price of an apartment property increased 1.9 per cent from November 2009 to $389,168.

Attached property sales in November 2010 totalled 407, a decline of 22.2 per cent compared to the 523 sales in November 2009, and a 186.6 per cent increase from the 142 attached properties sold in November 2008. The benchmark price of an attached unit increased 4.1 per cent between November 2009 and 2010 to $488,733.