A 'SOLD' sign sits on the front lawn of a home in Toronto in this file photo.Fred Lum/The Globe and Mail
The Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. says it expects housing starts in 2015 will dip slightly compared with last year, but remain broadly in line with economic and demographic trends.
The federal housing agency says housing starts are expected to decline by 1.0 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014 under its base-case scenario, while it expects Multiple Listing Service sales to stay the same and the MLS average price to increase by 1.5 per cent.
CMHC says it expects housing starts to range between 154,000 and 201,000 units in 2015, with a point forecast of 187,400 units.
The following year, the agency forecasts housing starts to range from 148,000 units to 203,000 units, with a point forecast of 185,100 units.
The agency expects MLS sales to range between 425,000 and 504,000 units in 2015, with a point forecast of 479,900 units.
In 2016, the CMHC forecasts resales to range from 410,000 units to 505,000 units, with a point forecast of 474,400 units.
The agency expects the average MLS price to be between $384,000 and $428,000 in 2015, with a point forecast of $414,200.
In 2016, the CMHC forecasts the average MLS price to be between $388,000 and $438,000, with a point forecast of $420,900.