Housing starts rise on strong urban detached activity

OTTAWA — The seasonally adjusted annual rate of housing starts in Canada was 226,639 units in August, up 1.9% from 222,467 units in July, according to the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. The SAAR of urban starts increased by 2% in August to 213,663 units. Multiple urban starts decreased by 1.4% to 160,388 units in August while single-detached urban starts increased by 13.6% to 53,275 units. Rural starts were estimated at a SAAR of 12,976 units.