December monthly housing starts key highlights

• The trend in housing starts was flat at -0.1% in December with 264,428 units.
• The trend measure is a 6-month moving average of the monthly seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR) of total housing starts for all areas in Canada.
• Actual housing starts were up 25% year-over-year in centres with a population of 10,000 or greater. 20,716 units were recorded in December 2025, compared to 16,531 units in 2024.
• Canada’s 6 largest Census Metropolitan Areas (CMAs) saw a combined 3.9% year-over-year increase from 2024. This was driven by record annual starts in Calgary and Edmonton, a 58% year-over-year increase in annual starts in Montréal and a 12% increase in Ottawa – Gatineau.
• These results made up for year-over-year decreases in Toronto (-31%) and Vancouver (-3%).

December Standalone Seasonally Adjusted Annual Rate (SAAR)

• The total monthly standalone seasonally adjusted annualized rate of housing starts for all areas in Canada was up 11% in December, at 282,439 units compared to 254,625 units in November.
• The seasonally adjusted annual rate of total urban housing starts in centres with populations of 10,000 or more increased by 12% in December. It totaled 270,168 units, compared to 241,814 units in November.
• Rural starts were estimated at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 12,271 units.