There could be a record high level of construction this year, despite a slower start to this 2018’s building season, says a CMHC senior analyst.
There were 382 housing starts this April which comes close to breaking last year’s record of 403 — much of which was for rental apartments and condos.
Related:Kelowna region new-home starts booming
“The recovery in housing starts activity, almost rivalling the record starts seen in April 2017, was the result of some large apartment rental and condo projects getting underway. Multi-unit housing demand, both rental and ownership, remains strong in the Kelowna CMA, while vacancy rates and homes listed for sale remain low,” Taylor Pardy, CMHC’s senior analyst for Kelowna, Southern Interior and Northern BC, said.
He believes Kelowna will see record numbers this year, even though there have been fewer housing starts in the first four months of the year compared to 2017.
Related:Almost half of B.C. renters spend more than 30% of income on housing
“The reason behind the drop is not due to a reduction in market activity. What we saw in 2017 is much higher because, last year was a year where builders really responded well to the market and saw a large increase in market construction,” Pardy said.
Kelowna has seen near-record levels of new home construction according to the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation which released its report until April 2018.
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