PEI Housing Starts in January

CHARLOTTETOWN, Feb. 8 /CNW/ - Residential construction in urban centres of the province increased when compared to the same period last year, according to figures released today by Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC). Preliminary data(1) indicate that a total of 21 units were started in January 2010 compared to 13 during the first month of 2009.

"Both Charlottetown and Summerside experienced slight increases in new home construction during the month," said Ralph Freeze , market analyst with CMHC in Prince Edward Island . Charlottetown had 16 units started compared to 11 in January of 2009, while Summerside recorded five new units compared to two units last year. There were no multiple starts recorded in either centre last January compared to two units this year in Charlottetown and four units in Summerside. "We have to go back to 2006 to find a month of January with more housing starts, and that was primarily due to apartment construction," said Freeze.

In urban centres across Canada , total housing starts recorded in January increased by 40 per cent, to 10,218 compared to last year's total of 7,309. Single-detached starts increased to 4,723 units from 2,605 units, while multiple unit starts were up 17 per cent to 5,495 units this year. In the Atlantic region, 424 new units were started in January 2010 compared to 355 units during the same period in 2009.

As Canada's national housing agency, CMHC draws on more than 60 years of experience to help Canadians access a variety of quality, environmentally sustainable, and affordable homes - homes that will continue to create vibrant and healthy communities and cities across the country.

    
    (1) Figures for the most recent month are preliminary and subject to
        revisions due to corrections or updates from quarterly enumeration or
        sampling results.
    

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                   PRELIMINARY URBAN MONTHLY HOUSING STARTS
                         PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND SUMMARY
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                          2010    2009                YEAR-TO-DATE
                         ---------------  % Change  -------------- % Change
                           JAN     JAN                2010    2009
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            ALL URBAN CENTRES WITH POPULATION GREATER THAN 10,000
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    CHARLOTTETOWN CA
    Single                  14      11        27.3%     14      11     27.3%
    Multiple                 2       0           -       2       0        -
    TOTAL                   16      11        45.5%     16      11     45.5%
    -------------------------------------------------------------------------
    SUMMERSIDE CA
    Single                   1       2       -50.0%      1       2    -50.0%
    Multiple                 4       0           -       4       0        -
    TOTAL                    5       2         (XX)      5       2      (XX)
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    ALL CENTRES*
    Single                  15      13        15.4%     15      13     15.4%
    Multiple                 6       0           -       6       0        -
    TOTAL                   21      13        61.5%     21      13     61.5%
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    (XX) Indicates changes in excess of 100% which are not reported due to
         volatility resulting from small absolute numbers.
    

For further information: visit www.cmhc.ca or call 1-800-668-2642; Information on this release: Ralph Freeze, Market Analyst, Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, [phone], [email protected]