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Kitchener–Cambridge–Waterloo construction market

What residential construction currently looks like in Kitchener–Cambridge–Waterloo: activity relative to population, the building pipeline, nominal and real growth, and market mix — measured against 15 other Canadian markets.

Trailing 12 months ending June 2026 Ontario · census metropolitan area · population 701,568 (2025)

  • Apartment-heavy
  • Renovation-heavy
  • Moderate construction intensity
  • Strong real permit growth

Key metrics

Housing starts per 1,000 residents
7.94
5,571 starts in 12 months
9th of 16
Housing completions per 1,000 residents
6.05
4,241 completions
10th of 16
Units under construction per 1,000 residents
11.48
8,052 units at period end
10th of 16
Pending starts per 1,000 residents
0.94
656 units · secondary indicator
15th of 16
Residential permit value growth (constant dollars)
+15.5%
Nominal +18.2%
3rd of 16
Residential construction price growth
Not published
Not published for this CMA
Not ranked
Renovation share of residential investment
44.1%
of residential investment
7th of 16
Apartment share of housing starts
86.1%
of housing starts
3rd of 16

Current observations

  • Kitchener–Cambridge–Waterloo recorded 5,571 housing starts over the trailing 12 months ending June 2026 — 7.94 per 1,000 residents, 9th of 16 tracked markets (median 8.33).
  • 11.48 units per 1,000 residents were under construction at period end (10th of 16 tracked markets), 1.9 times the 6.05 per 1,000 completed over the past 12 months.
  • Residential permit value rose 18.2% nominally and approximately 15.5% after adjusting for construction prices. The segments differ: in constant dollars, single-dwelling permit value changed +2.7% and multiple-dwelling +19.4%.
  • Renovation accounts for 44.1% of residential investment (7th of 16 tracked markets by renovation share). Apartments were 86.1% of housing starts and single-detached homes 7.8%.
  • Statistics Canada does not publish a residential construction price index for this CMA, so construction price growth is not shown; constant-dollar permit and investment growth are still available.
  • Pending starts — permits issued but not yet started — stood at 0.94 per 1,000 residents (15th of 16 tracked markets). This is a secondary indicator of the current backlog, not a forecast.

Generated from the published values on this page using fixed rules. They describe current measured conditions and are not forecasts.

Historical context

Monthly, as trailing 12-month totals (except units under construction, a month-end stock), 2019 to June 2026.

Housing starts by dwelling type

Trailing 12-month starts. Multi-unit = semi-detached, row and apartment.

  • Single-detached
  • Multi-unit
Housing starts by dwelling type, Jan 2019 to Jun 2026. Latest: Single-detached 433; Multi-unit 5,138. Full values in the table below the chart.02,0004,0006,00020192020202120222023202420252026
Show all monthly values as a table
Housing starts by dwelling type
Period endingSingle-detachedMulti-unit
January 20199711,620
February 20199201,539
March 20198721,283
April 20199042,314
May 20198762,312
June 20198662,352
July 20198852,637
August 20199093,300
September 20199223,620
October 20199034,008
November 20199014,131
December 20198984,579
January 20208334,838
February 20208335,055
March 20208535,368
April 20208214,321
May 20208124,315
June 20207924,628
July 20208174,360
August 20208443,691
September 20208483,660
October 20208423,425
November 20208723,164
December 20208592,890
January 20218813,330
February 20218883,121
March 20218933,031
April 20219413,794
May 20219994,139
June 20211,0043,775
July 20219724,123
August 20219614,404
September 20219364,007
October 20219144,389
November 20218704,517
December 20218854,717
January 20228494,017
February 20228754,072
March 20228544,061
April 20228333,388
May 20228253,073
June 20229213,257
July 20229533,135
August 20229323,100
September 20229563,145
October 20221,0152,942
November 20221,0613,644
December 20221,0223,825
January 20231,0454,081
February 20231,0424,314
March 20231,0814,097
April 20231,0504,020
May 20231,0244,053
June 20239683,731
July 20239353,649
August 20239573,416
September 20239093,701
October 20238613,628
November 20238423,032
December 20238503,862
January 20248133,694
February 20247403,522
March 20246963,539
April 20246933,955
May 20246543,843
June 20245924,327
July 20245594,316
August 20244994,504
September 20244834,125
October 20244404,134
November 20243963,859
December 20243763,035
January 20253793,047
February 20253713,180
March 20253593,434
April 20253423,194
May 20253253,201
June 20253142,687
July 20253432,805
August 20253523,114
September 20253594,225
October 20254253,978
November 20254233,983
December 20254333,873
January 20264493,845
February 20264484,592
March 20264384,297
April 20264424,893
May 20264455,102
June 20264335,138

Under construction and completions

Units under construction (month-end) and trailing 12-month completions.

  • Under construction
  • Completions (12 mo)
Under construction and completions, Jan 2019 to Jun 2026. Latest: Under construction 8,052; Completions (12 mo) 4,241. Full values in the table below the chart.05,00010,00020192020202120222023202420252026
Show all monthly values as a table
Under construction and completions
Period endingUnder constructionCompletions (12 mo)
January 20193,3103,631
February 20193,3183,499
March 20193,1383,269
April 20194,0912,856
May 20193,9053,022
June 20193,9632,959
July 20194,2822,673
August 20194,9772,354
September 20195,3842,396
October 20195,7062,365
November 20195,9792,226
December 20196,1052,603
January 20206,1182,893
February 20206,2392,997
March 20206,4532,935
April 20205,8523,415
May 20205,8883,117
June 20206,2353,204
July 20206,1303,385
August 20206,1533,407
September 20206,3353,623
October 20206,2523,786
November 20206,2403,838
December 20206,3073,634
January 20217,0223,394
February 20216,7273,602
March 20216,7973,532
April 20217,4593,076
May 20217,7253,249
June 20217,5823,295
July 20217,9413,147
August 20217,9393,452
September 20218,0103,152
October 20218,2683,171
November 20217,7333,776
December 20217,2224,507
January 20227,0714,637
February 20227,0234,477
March 20227,2344,433
April 20227,3114,324
May 20227,2704,308
June 20227,6044,109
July 20227,8314,151
August 20228,1083,814
September 20228,2743,782
October 20227,5564,614
November 20228,2494,137
December 20228,6763,396
January 20238,7773,418
February 20238,3983,979
March 20238,2194,192
April 20238,0154,357
May 20237,4184,923
June 20237,3694,930
July 20236,6335,771
August 20236,5225,948
September 20236,6356,233
October 20236,3455,680
November 20236,3795,724
December 20237,1996,161
January 20246,9736,287
February 20246,6665,970
March 20246,1496,065
April 20246,0196,406
May 20245,8015,899
June 20246,0506,023
July 20246,0405,260
August 20246,2275,090
September 20246,1534,881
October 20246,1634,551
November 20245,9324,497
December 20246,5303,881
January 20256,6213,580
February 20256,8743,145
March 20257,1132,847
April 20256,8262,753
May 20256,7902,536
June 20256,4882,565
July 20256,7332,457
August 20257,2952,400
September 20257,3963,344
October 20257,2503,319
November 20256,9873,322
December 20256,6794,236
January 20266,7954,202
February 20267,6964,321
March 20267,3974,557
April 20267,9974,268
May 20268,0024,438
June 20268,0524,241

Residential permit value: nominal and constant dollars

Trailing 12-month value, $ millions. Constant dollars are Statistics Canada’s price-adjusted series.

  • Nominal
  • Constant dollars
Residential permit value: nominal and constant dollars, Jan 2019 to Jun 2026. Latest: Nominal $1,612M; Constant dollars $1,509M. Full values in the table below the chart.$0M$1,000M$2,000M$3,000M20192020202120222023202420252026
Show all monthly values as a table
Residential permit value: nominal and constant dollars
Period endingNominalConstant dollars
January 2019$921M$1,591M
February 2019$938M$1,617M
March 2019$938M$1,612M
April 2019$916M$1,570M
May 2019$927M$1,583M
June 2019$1,198M$2,035M
July 2019$1,297M$2,194M
August 2019$1,347M$2,271M
September 2019$1,361M$2,292M
October 2019$1,465M$2,460M
November 2019$1,550M$2,595M
December 2019$1,457M$2,438M
January 2020$1,384M$2,313M
February 2020$1,438M$2,401M
March 2020$1,463M$2,439M
April 2020$1,429M$2,380M
May 2020$1,480M$2,458M
June 2020$1,239M$2,052M
July 2020$1,126M$1,859M
August 2020$1,176M$1,929M
September 2020$1,229M$2,009M
October 2020$1,115M$1,814M
November 2020$1,169M$1,880M
December 2020$1,320M$2,103M
January 2021$1,349M$2,138M
February 2021$1,382M$2,169M
March 2021$1,450M$2,253M
April 2021$1,548M$2,383M
May 2021$1,556M$2,354M
June 2021$1,571M$2,348M
July 2021$1,593M$2,347M
August 2021$1,582M$2,274M
September 2021$1,563M$2,215M
October 2021$1,565M$2,189M
November 2021$1,561M$2,118M
December 2021$1,534M$2,025M
January 2022$1,522M$1,987M
February 2022$1,466M$1,881M
March 2022$1,458M$1,831M
April 2022$1,436M$1,772M
May 2022$1,468M$1,773M
June 2022$1,546M$1,838M
July 2022$1,545M$1,815M
August 2022$1,511M$1,743M
September 2022$1,489M$1,703M
October 2022$1,518M$1,717M
November 2022$1,535M$1,698M
December 2022$1,446M$1,575M
January 2023$1,453M$1,573M
February 2023$1,422M$1,530M
March 2023$1,371M$1,461M
April 2023$1,346M$1,425M
May 2023$1,439M$1,503M
June 2023$1,346M$1,396M
July 2023$1,508M$1,550M
August 2023$1,514M$1,547M
September 2023$1,601M$1,628M
October 2023$1,612M$1,632M
November 2023$1,904M$1,906M
December 2023$1,901M$1,897M
January 2024$1,962M$1,953M
February 2024$1,966M$1,954M
March 2024$1,958M$1,943M
April 2024$1,926M$1,909M
May 2024$1,728M$1,706M
June 2024$1,781M$1,756M
July 2024$1,570M$1,544M
August 2024$1,555M$1,526M
September 2024$1,509M$1,478M
October 2024$1,420M$1,390M
November 2024$1,096M$1,065M
December 2024$1,165M$1,129M
January 2025$1,163M$1,125M
February 2025$1,164M$1,124M
March 2025$1,180M$1,138M
April 2025$1,272M$1,225M
May 2025$1,255M$1,206M
June 2025$1,364M$1,307M
July 2025$1,532M$1,463M
August 2025$1,523M$1,452M
September 2025$1,500M$1,428M
October 2025$1,595M$1,517M
November 2025$1,540M$1,461M
December 2025$1,427M$1,351M
January 2026$1,596M$1,506M
February 2026$1,576M$1,485M
March 2026$1,765M$1,659M
April 2026$1,722M$1,616M
May 2026$1,718M$1,611M
June 2026$1,612M$1,509M

Market mix

Housing starts by dwelling type, 12 months

Housing starts by dwelling type in Kitchener–Cambridge–Waterloo
Dwelling typeStartsShare
Single-detached4337.8%
Semi-detached180.3%
Row3245.8%
Apartment and other4,79686.1%

Rental-intended starts: 52.5% of all starts.

Renovation vs. new construction

Renovation 44.1% New construction 55.9%

Share of residential building investment. Alterations are 8.2% of residential permit value (a separate source).

Growth: nominal and constant dollars

Nominal and constant-dollar growth, trailing 12 months ending June 2026 versus the prior 12 months
SeriesNominalConstant $
All residential permits+18.2%+15.5%
Single-dwelling buildings+4.7%+2.7%
Multiple-dwelling buildings+22.3%+19.4%
Residential building investment+22.8%+20.0%

Nominal growth includes construction-price change; constant-dollar growth is Statistics Canada’s price-adjusted series. They are shown side by side rather than subtracted.

All published metrics

All published construction metrics for Kitchener–Cambridge–Waterloo, trailing 12 months ending June 2026
MetricKitchener–Cambridge–WaterlooDefinition
Population701,568July 1 population estimate for the census metropolitan area.
Housing starts, trailing 12 months5,571Dwelling units started over the trailing 12 months (CMHC Starts and Completions Survey).
Housing starts per 1,000 residents7.94Housing starts (all dwelling types) over the trailing 12 months divided by the CMA population estimate, per 1,000 residents.
Housing starts, change vs prior 12 months+85.6%Change in trailing-12-month housing starts compared with the 12 months before.
Housing completions, trailing 12 months4,241Dwelling units completed over the trailing 12 months.
Housing completions per 1,000 residents6.05Dwelling units completed over the trailing 12 months divided by the CMA population estimate, per 1,000 residents.
Completions, change vs prior 12 months+65.3%Change in trailing-12-month completions compared with the 12 months before.
Units under construction8,052Dwelling units under construction at the end of the reference period.
Units under construction per 1,000 residents11.48Dwelling units under construction at the end of the reference period (a stock, not a 12-month flow) per 1,000 residents.
Under construction, change vs a year earlier+24.1%Change in units under construction compared with the same month a year earlier.
Pending starts656Units with a building permit issued but not yet started, at the end of the reference period.
Pending starts per 1,000 residents0.94Units with a building permit issued but not yet started, at the end of the reference period, per 1,000 residents. A secondary indicator of the current pipeline, not a forecast of starts.
Pending starts, change vs a year earlier−44.9%Change in pending starts compared with the same month a year earlier.
Dwelling units authorized per 1,000 residents8.03Dwelling units created by building permits issued over the trailing 12 months, per 1,000 residents.
Authorized units, change vs prior 12 months+19.3%Change in dwelling units authorized by building permits compared with the prior 12 months.
Residential permit value, trailing 12 months$1.61BValue of residential building permits, current dollars.
Residential permit value growth (nominal)+18.2%Change in the value of residential building permits over the trailing 12 months versus the prior 12 months, in current dollars.
Residential permit value growth (constant dollars)+15.5%The same change measured with Statistics Canada’s constant-dollar permit values, which remove construction-price change.
Residential investment growth (nominal)+22.8%Change in residential building investment over the trailing 12 months versus the prior 12 months, current dollars.
Residential investment growth (constant dollars)+20.0%The same change measured in Statistics Canada’s constant-dollar investment series.
Residential construction price index (2023 = 100)Not publishedAverage of the four latest quarterly index values, 2023 = 100. Each market is indexed to its own 2023 prices, so index levels show price change within a market and cannot be compared across markets.Not published for this market for the reference period.
Residential construction price growthNot publishedChange in the residential building construction price index (average of the four latest quarters versus the four before). Not published for every CMA.Statistics Canada does not publish a building construction price index for this CMA.
Renovation share of residential investment44.1%Renovation spending as a share of total residential building investment over the trailing 12 months.
Alterations share of residential permit value8.2%Permit value for alterations and improvements as a share of all residential permit value — an independent view of renovation activity.
Apartment share of housing starts86.1%Apartment and other unit types as a share of all housing starts over the trailing 12 months.
Single-detached share of housing starts7.8%Single-detached units as a share of all housing starts over the trailing 12 months.
Rental share of housing starts52.5%Starts intended for the rental market as a share of all starts over the trailing 12 months.

Compare Kitchener–Cambridge–Waterloo

Where Kitchener–Cambridge–Waterloo ranks

Sources and data period

Figures cover the trailing 12 months ending June 2026, the latest period published for all 16 markets. Source data retrieved through September 12, 2026. This page was built on November 8, 2026; the build date is not the data period. Values not published by the source are shown as “Not published”, never estimated.

Methodology, definitions and limitations

Dataset generated September 13, 2026.

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    Construction Market Intelligence

    An independent publication built from official Statistics Canada and CMHC data. Current data: trailing 12 months ending June 2026.

    Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Canada. Not affiliated with or endorsed by Statistics Canada or CMHC.