Latest news with #CanadaMortgageHousingCorp
Globe and Mail
15-05-2025
- Business
- Globe and Mail
Annual pace of housing starts in Canada up 30% in April from March
Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. says the annual pace of housing starts in April rose 30 per cent compared with March. The national housing agency says the seasonally adjusted annual rate of housing starts for April was 278,606 units, up from 214,205 in March. The annual pace of urban housing starts rose 28 per cent in April to 259,788 compared with 202,668 units in March. CMHC says actual urban housing starts in April were up 17 per cent year-over-year at 21,720 compared with 18,539 in April 2024. The annual pace of rural starts was estimated at 18,818. The six-month moving average of the overall seasonally adjusted annual rate of housing starts was 240,905 in April, up 2.4 per cent.
Yahoo
14-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Posthaste: Developers lament construction costs in Canada, but it could be a lot worse
Construction costs have been a major obstacle for growth in some of Canada's big cities, but those costs fall in the middle of the road compared to the world's urban centres. Toronto (No. 41), Vancouver (No. 46), Calgary (No. 48) and Montreal (No. 50) each fall into the middle of the pack in Arcadis NV's list of the 100 most expensive cities for construction. Interest rates, material costs and red tape are among the factors developers lament about Canadian construction, but Arcadis believes the outlook for Canadian development is positive. 'There is a huge pipeline of work, and a large amount of infrastructure spending has already been committed,' Catherine Bruen, business unit leader of cost and commercial management at Arcadis, said in a news release. 'This should hopefully lead to a return to growth across the construction sector in 2025 and beyond.' United States tariffs on Canadian products threaten to further slow construction down, but the federal government has taken steps to reduce costs for developers. The federal government last spring removed the GST on new rental housing construction projects, which 70 per cent of developers believe will help with long-term supply, according to Canada Mortgage Housing Corp. The government is now promising the 'most ambitious housing plan since the Second World War,' with the goal of building 500,000 new homes annually. Prime Minister Mark Carney is planning $10 billion in financing for affordable home builders, cutting red tape and introducing tax incentives to spur construction. But the political climate is making construction more difficult in the near term. 'Any growth potential could be tempered by a couple of headwinds, namely the prospect of potential delays to project approvals until the dust settles after April's election, plus the ongoing tariff trade dispute with the U.S.,' the Arcadis report said. Geneva, London, Zurich, Munich and New York City were the five most expensive cities for construction. But there is room for optimism, according to Arcadis, which believes construction is ready for a rebound. 'Despite many challenges, there is a clear horizon of opportunity,' Paul Maddison, acting global head of cost and commercial management, said in the report. 'Even with slower growth, most development markets show strong underlying demand, whether for modern, near-zero-carbon office space, data centre capacity or housing. Demand for data centres, for example, has driven rents high enough to offset construction cost premiums.' to get Posthaste delivered straight to your U.S.'s loss could be Canada's gain for the job market. A burst in interest for U.S.-based jobs among foreigners has plummeted to levels not seen since before the COVID-19 pandemic, according to new data from Indeed Inc. Clicks on job postings have fallen more than 30 per cent since their August 2023 peak, with white collar jobs such as science, engineering and mathematics facing the steepest drop. The changing dynamics could help Canada's economy, as the 'brain drain' from the U.S. could soon begin to look north. Read more here. Canadian Chamber of Commerce B7 Summit begins in Ottawa Today's Data: Building permits for March, vehicle sales for March (expected) Earnings: Cisco Systems Inc., Stantec Inc. These are the Carney cabinet picks that business leaders will be watching Honda taps the brakes on $15-billion EV project in Ontario amid tariffs and market slowdown These are the stock market sectors poised to benefit from the Carney era Ontario to make gas tax cut permanent, remove tolls on Highway 407 East Taking a mid-career gap to travel or assess your life situation can be a viable choice for many Canadians, but it can jeopardize your financial health without the proper planning. Mary Ellen Byrne, a senior wealth adviser and portfolio manager at Richardson Wealth Ltd., recommends taking into account all priorities and making adjustments to maintain them as a successful way to manage extended time off. Read more here. Are you worried about having enough for retirement? Do you need to adjust your portfolio? Are you starting out or making a change and wondering how to build wealth? Are you trying to make ends meet? Drop us a line at wealth@ with your contact info and the gist of your problem and we'll find some experts to help you out while writing a Family Finance story about it (we'll keep your name out of it, of course). Want to learn more about mortgages? Mortgage strategist Robert McLister's Financial Post column can help navigate the complex sector, from the latest trends to financing opportunities you won't want to miss. Plus check his mortgage rate page for Canada's lowest national mortgage rates, updated daily. Visit the Financial Post's YouTube channel for interviews with Canada's leading experts in business, economics, housing, the energy sector and more. Today's Posthaste was written by Ben Cousins with additional reporting from Financial Post staff, The Canadian Press and Bloomberg. Have a story idea, pitch, embargoed report, or a suggestion for this newsletter? Email us at posthaste@ High down payments keep Canadians out of homeownership Car ownership has gotten more expensive and it could get worse Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
