The numbers paint a fairly clear picture. People are devoting less money to construction of new houses.
We’ve just come off an election campaign where one of the primary issues in the major metropolitan markets was the pricing of housing. This was especially true in Toronto which pretty much carries the day when it comes to elections.
And, a new StatsCan report shows that investment in residential building construction fell in September which extended the downward trend that started early in the year.
The government response to higher prices driven by a shortage of supply has largely been to tighten the rules, making it harder to get financing in hopes of stifling demand. But tightening the market is exactly the wrong approach….more supply, not less is needed.
And that’s what we’re seeing in the more freewheeling non-residential market. In that one Saskatchewan, for example, led the way nationally in growth of investment in industrial projects….pushed by money going into food and agricultural processing facilities.
Source: https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/211110/dq211110a-eng.htm?HPA=1
