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December 15, 2020HOUSING STARTS, NOVEMBER 2020 
Nova Scotia’s housing starts (seasonally adjusted annualized rate) totalled 7,355 units in November 2020, up 160.7% from 2,821 in October 2020.
The monthly increase in November reflects higher starts in Halifax and lower starts in Nova Scotia outside of Halifax. Housing starts increased 348.9% in Halifax, from 1,365 in October to 6,128 in November 2020. Outside Halifax, housing starts were down 15.7%, from 1,456 in October to 1,227 in November 2020.
Compared to November 2019, housing starts in Nova Scotia increased 83.7%. Housing starts in Halifax were up by 167.4% while outside of Halifax housing starts declined 28.3% compared to last year.
The six-month moving average of housing starts in Nova Scotia and Halifax was relatively flat through 2017. During 2018, the six-month moving average increased due to higher starts for multiples and declined after reaching a peak in September. The six-month moving average rose in the summer of 2019 due to trends in the Halifax market. For Nova Scotia, the trend has been negative through 2020 due to declines outside of Halifax, while within Halifax there has been an upward trend. However, the trend has been increasing since August 2020. Outside of Halifax, the six-month moving average was elevated through 2018 but has since returned to levels similar to those seen in 2017. Since the spring of 2019, the six-month moving average has been trending downward outside of Halifax with some increase in recent months.
In urban areas, housing starts for multiples are generally higher than for singles with greater variability month-to-month. The six-month moving average for singles was relatively flat through most of 2019 and has been trending downward since May 2020. The six-month moving average for multiples rose during the summer months of 2018 and declined until the first quarter of 2019. Since then, the six-month moving average for multiples has been fluctuating with some uptick since August 2020.
Nationally, housing starts increased 14.4% to 246,033 in November 2020 compared to 215,134 in October 2020. Housing starts in Canada were up 20.1% compared to a year ago.
Nova Scotia posted the highest increase among all provinces (+160.7%) following the largest monthly decline among all provinces in October 2020. Compared to the previous month, housing starts were down only in Alberta (-19.6%).
In Jan-Nov 2020, housing starts was up 5.3% in Nova Scotia compared to the same period in 2019. Nationally, housing starts increased 2.9% in the first 11 months of 2020 versus the same period in 2019. Five provinces reported annual housing start increases with Saskatchewan posting the largest increase (+27.4%). Housing starts were down in five provinces led by British Columbia (-18.1%).
During the COVID-19 pandemic housing starts declined in all provinces, falling below 10-year averages (2010-2019).
November housing starts in Canada were 22.3% above the 10-year average, while 3 of 10 provinces reported starts below the 10-year average. New Brunswick posted the largest increase (+94.8%). The largest decline in housing starts (relative to the 10-year average) was reported in Newfoundland and Labrador (-54.4%). November housing starts in Nova Scotia were 75.9% below the 10-year average.
Note: Urban areas are defined as areas over 10,000 people
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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