Housing starts per capita in Canadian cities
Trailing 12 months ending June 2026 16 of 16 markets published
What this measures
Housing starts (all dwelling types) over the trailing 12 months divided by the CMA population estimate, per 1,000 residents.
Normalizing by population separates construction intensity from market size: a large city can start many homes and still build slowly relative to its population.
Ranked on this single metric only — no composite score.
Observations
- Moncton ranks first at 13.47, ahead of Calgary at 13.25.
- The highest value is 3.7 times the lowest (Hamilton, 3.66).
- The median is 8.33. The three most populous markets — Toronto, Montréal and Vancouver — rank 15th, 13th and 8th, so this ranking does not simply follow market size.
- Single-detached homes were less than 25% of starts in 12 of 16 markets.
Housing starts per 1,000 residents
Full table
| Rank | Market | Starts /1,000 | Starts (12 mo) | Single-detached share | Apartment share | Starts change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Moncton | 13.47 | 2,643 | 11.0% | 73.9% | −15.1% |
| 2 | Calgary | 13.25 | 24,323 | 24.3% | 55.2% | −12.8% |
| 3 | Edmonton | 11.32 | 19,153 | 30.7% | 46.7% | −7.9% |
| 4 | Halifax | 10.78 | 5,871 | 13.3% | 78.2% | +20.3% |
| 5 | Saskatoon | 10.39 | 3,932 | 35.2% | 53.1% | +10.1% |
| 6 | Victoria | 9.87 | 4,392 | 7.4% | 79.9% | −4.9% |
| 7 | Québec City | 8.87 | 8,015 | 9.3% | 82.2% | −1.2% |
| 8 | Vancouver | 8.72 | 26,935 | 7.9% | 78.6% | +1.2% |
| 9 | Kitchener–Cambridge–Waterloo | 7.94 | 5,571 | 7.8% | 86.1% | +85.6% |
| 10 | Ottawa–Gatineau | 7.79 | 13,236 | 14.9% | 67.2% | −2.8% |
| 11 | London | 7.57 | 4,794 | 8.7% | 78.5% | +48.4% |
| 12 | Winnipeg | 7.48 | 7,115 | 26.7% | 56.2% | +31.2% |
| 13 | Montréal | 6.20 | 28,492 | 4.7% | 91.2% | +36.4% |
| 14 | Regina | 5.81 | 1,691 | 25.7% | 56.2% | +13.3% |
| 15 | Toronto | 3.76 | 26,737 | 10.7% | 75.6% | −3.7% |
| 16 | Hamilton | 3.66 | 3,189 | 9.5% | 86.5% | +28.4% |
- Starts (12 mo):
- Dwelling units started over the trailing 12 months (CMHC Starts and Completions Survey).
- Single-detached share:
- Single-detached units as a share of all housing starts over the trailing 12 months.
- Apartment share:
- Apartment and other unit types as a share of all housing starts over the trailing 12 months.
- Starts change:
- Change in trailing-12-month housing starts compared with the 12 months before.
Related rankings
Analysis behind the numbers
These articles retain their original data periods; the tables on this page show current figures.
Moncton delivered more homes as its housing pipeline shrank
Moncton leads 16 tracked markets in housing delivery per capita, but weaker June approvals, a renovation shift and firmer September figures complicate the picture.
Published
Data period: 12 months ending June 2026; separate January–September 2026 update
Ottawa–Gatineau's housing starts are now 85% multi-unit
Multi-unit housing accounted for 85.1% of Ottawa–Gatineau starts, while 60.6% of all starts were rental-intended.
Published
Data period: Trailing 12 months ending June 2026
Halifax has the largest housing construction pipeline per capita among 16 major Canadian markets
Halifax leads the 16 markets tracked here in homes under construction per capita, while starts, completions and permit values point in different directions.
Published
Data period: Trailing 12 months ending June 2026
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.
- Statistics Canada (CMHC Starts and Completions Survey) — CMHC housing starts, under construction and completions in selected CMAs, monthly
Table 34-10-0154-01 · monthly · dwelling units · latest period July 2026
- Statistics Canada — Population estimates, July 1, by census metropolitan area and census agglomeration
Table 17-10-0148-01 · annual · persons · latest period 2025