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May 19, 2026HOUSING STARTS, APRIL 2026 Monthly (April 2026 vs March 2026, seasonally adjusted annualized rate)
Nova Scotia’s housing starts (seasonally adjusted annualized rate) totalled 5,283 units in April 2026. This was a 1.2% gain from the previous month's revised value of 5,219 starts.
Housing starts in Halifax fell to a seasonally adjusted annualized rate of 2,395 units in April 2026. This was a 14.9% decline from 2,815 units in March 2026.
Outside of Halifax, housing starts increased to a seasonally adjusted annualized rate of 2,888 units in April 2026, up 20.1% from 2,404 units in March 2026.
Across Canada, housing starts rose to a seasonally adjusted annualized rate of 279,317 units in April 2026, up 16.5% from 239,747 units reported in March 2026.
Housing starts were up in six provinces in April 2026, with the fastest percentage increases in Newfoundland and Labrador, Saskatchewan, and British Columbia. The fastest decline was reported in Québec. Note: monthly changes in seasonally adjusted annualized housing starts are often volatile.
Year-over-year (April 2026 vs April 2025, seasonally adjusted annualized rate)
Nova Scotia's housing starts were down 61.2% compared with the 13,600 unit pace set in April 2025, the steepest decline among provinces. Halifax housing starts were down 78.2% from their rate in April 2025 (11,011). Housing starts outside the city were up 11.5% year-over-year from their pace in April 2025 (2,589). Across Canada, housing starts were down 0.9% year-over-year in April 2026 despite gains in six provinces. The largest gain was reported in New Brunswick.
In unadjusted results for Halifax in April 2026, there were 196 housing starts and 127 completions. From March to April, the stock of units under construction in Halifax rose to 13,549 units, this was up 17.0% from units under construction in the same month last year (11,582).
Year-to-date (January-April 2025 vs January-April 2026)
Nova Scotia housing starts fell by 35.3% in the first four months of 2026 compared to the same period a year ago, the fastest decline among provinces. Halifax housing starts decreased 51.0% in January-April 2026 compared to the same period a year ago, while housing starts in the rest of Nova Scotia rose 13.6%. Nationally, housing starts grew 5.5% in the first four months of 2026, with gains in six provinces, led by New Brunswick.
Source: Statistics Canada, Table 34-10-0158-01 Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, housing starts, all areas, Canada and provinces, seasonally adjusted at annual rates, monthly (x 1,000) ; Table 34-10-0156-01 Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, housing starts in all centres 10,000 and over, Canada, provinces, and census metropolitan areas, seasonally adjusted at annual rates, monthly (x 1,000)
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