Toronto housing-starts trend held flat while Ontario fell 7%

Toronto’s housing-starts trend held virtually unchanged in August, but Ontario’s broader construction pace moved sharply lower as multi-unit activity softened.

The figures come from Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation’s September 16 housing-starts release. They measure new residential construction—not resale transactions, MLS® listings or home prices—and the monthly trend is expressed as a seasonally adjusted annual rate.

Toronto held steady as Ontario slowed

CMHC’s six-month trend for the Toronto census metropolitan area was 25,131 annualized units in August, compared with 25,112 in July. The change rounds to 0%.

Both major components were also essentially flat. The single-detached trend was 2,611 units, while the trend for all other housing types was 22,520. The small movement in those figures reinforces the central August result: Toronto’s trend did not regain momentum, but it did not decline further during the month.

Ontario moved differently. Its total trend fell 7% to 58,933 annualized units from 63,370 in July. The provincial single-detached component increased 3% to 9,882, but that was outweighed by a 9% decline in all other housing types to 49,051.

That mix matters. Apartments, condominiums, row housing and other multi-unit forms carry much of Ontario’s new-home volume. A decline in that broader category can pull the provincial total down even when detached construction improves modestly.

The year-to-date Toronto count was lower

The trend smooths volatile monthly activity, while CMHC’s actual year-to-date count records starts observed between January and August.

On that basis, Toronto recorded 15,957 housing starts in the first eight months of 2026, down 3% from 16,451 during the same period of 2025. Single-detached starts fell 23% to 1,575. Starts for all other housing types were effectively unchanged at 14,382 compared with 14,407 a year earlier.

This is an important distinction: Toronto’s August trend was flat month to month, but the cumulative number of homes that had actually started construction remained below last year’s pace.

A large pipeline is still moving through construction

CMHC also tracks approved units awaiting a start, homes under construction and completions in centres with populations of at least 50,000.

In the Toronto CMA, approved units awaiting construction increased 9.2% from July to 19,516. Units under construction declined 1.3% to 91,584. Completions rose to 2,362 from 1,009 in July, a 134.1% monthly increase.

The completion jump should be read carefully. Multi-unit projects finish in large batches, so one month can move dramatically when a building reaches completion. It does not mean the region’s underlying construction pace doubled; the six-month starts trend is designed to provide a steadier view.

What the August data means

For buyers watching the new-home market, the report shows a substantial number of homes still under construction, but a weaker flow of new starts than the region ultimately needs for sustained supply growth. Timing will vary by project, and a regional total does not confirm availability, pricing or completion at a particular development.

For builders and sellers, the flat Toronto trend and lower Ontario trend point to a cautious construction environment rather than a broad acceleration. The figures do not describe resale demand, negotiating conditions or the value of an existing home.

Nationally, the six-month trend declined 1.3% to 244,149 units. Actual August starts in centres with at least 10,000 residents were 2% lower than a year earlier, while the national monthly seasonally adjusted annual rate was nearly unchanged.

The practical reading is restrained: Toronto’s smoothed construction pace stabilized in August, but year-to-date starts were still 3% below 2025 and Ontario’s trend weakened. The next release will show whether Toronto’s pause becomes a foundation for improvement or simply a plateau.