Sudbury housing starts slow in March

Housing starts in Sudbury are at half of what they were at this time in 2010, according to the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC).

Only four single detached starts were reported in March, bringing the total to 15 for the year to date--a 50-per cent decrease from the previous year.

"Single detached starts recovered in 2010 partly on the strength of an early spring in the Greater Sudbury area," reports Warren Philp, Northern Ontario market analyst with CMHC, in a press release. “The March weather this year was not as co-operative as last March and therefore starts are off for the first quarter. In the year-to-date, there were 15 single-detached units counted compared to 30 for the same period last year."

Simiar trends are apparent throughout the North.

Starts are behind in North Bay and Sault Ste. Marie, where there there has been a decrease in first-quarter starts by 78.9 per cent and 43.8 per cent, respectively.

The exception is Timmins, which experienced five starts in 2011. The community had no starts at this time last year.