May 2016 saw a noticeable slowdown in the rate of new housing construction across Canada, according to the latest numbers from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. (CMHC).

In a report by The Canadian Press, the CMHC figures revealed that housing starts withdrew to a more moderate pace in May compared with April. Last month’s seasonally adjusted annual rate sat at 188,570, down from the prior month’s 191,388.

Meanwhile, last month’s urban starts declined by 2.5% (down to 170,432 units), a development that was largely influenced by the significant 5.7% drop in multiple-unit starts (down to 110,834). On the other hand, the rate of single-detached starts grew by 4.2% (up to 59,598).

Accompanying the slower pace of new housing projects is the release of Statistics Canada numbers showing a decline in the value of municipal construction permits for the second straight month, which dropped by 0.3% to $6.9 billion in April 2016.

On the same month, residential permits weakened by 1.8% to $4.3 billion, while multi-family building permits fell by 6.2% to $1.9 billion. Bucking the trend is the value of single-family building permits, which increased by 1.8% to $2.5 billion.

Rate of Canadian Housing Construction Drops in May by Ephraim Vecina | Canadian Real Estate Wealth