CMHC says approved but unbuilt homes rise as housing starts fall

The number of homes with approved building permits but no construction started rose to 143,929 in September, according to Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation. That count, reported for centres of 50,000 or more, increased 1.1% from August. Actual housing starts in centres of 10,000 or more fell 11% year-over-year in September to 19,984 units. From January through September, starts in those centres totalled 170,964, down 4% from the same period in 2025.

"As outlined in CMHC’s latest Housing Supply Report (HSR), a key risk for Canada now is not building enough during this period of softening housing markets across the country," said Aled ab Iorwerth, deputy chief economist at CMHC. "Canada still faces a long-term housing supply gap and unless housing construction levels increase, improvements in housing affordability since 2023 will be difficult to sustain," he said. The seasonally adjusted annual rate of starts across Canada rose 3% in September to 248,896 units. CMHC’s six-month trend, a moving average of that rate, was essentially flat at 250,411. The agency uses the trend alongside the monthly figure to account for considerable swings, as multi-unit starts that largely drive the market can vary widely from month to month.

Homes already underway held steady, with 371,617 units under construction in centres of 50,000 or more in September, flat from August. Completions fell 0.9% to 17,398 units. The regional picture was uneven, with Quebec being the only one of Canada’s four most populous provinces to see modest gains in housing starts for 2026. "Each of the seven major centres covered in the HSR are behind 2025’s pace for new home construction," ab Iorwerth said. Montreal’s six-month trend fell 8% in September on lower multi-unit starts, while Vancouver’s rose 6% on higher multi-unit starts. Toronto’s trend was flat, with single-detached and multi-unit trends offsetting each other. CMHC will release October’s housing starts data on November 17.

With files from Storeys