Housing starts stall as CMHC warns affordability gains at risk
CMHC warns that slowing housing starts threaten Canada's fragile affordability gains - the country risks not building enough while markets soften.
Canada’s housing agency has a warning: the country isn’t building enough – and housing starts are stalling just as affordability was beginning to improve.
“A key risk for Canada now is not building enough during this period of softening housing markets across the country,” CMHC economist Aled ab Iorwerth warned in the agency’s latest assessment.
The paradox, explained
Softening prices and easing rents might sound like good news for buyers – but if builders pull back in response, today’s modest affordability gains evaporate and tomorrow’s shortage deepens. That’s the trap CMHC is flagging: the country needs sustained record construction for years to close the supply gap, and starts are heading the wrong way at the worst possible moment.
The warning lands ahead of the Bank of Canada’s October 28 decision – lower rates would help builders’ financing costs and buyers’ wallets at once. More in Housing & Real Estate.
Sources: CMHC housing supply warning and CMHC reports calendar.
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