Since you can't compare statistically and with exact science, Woodstock and southern Ontario with other provinces or even Metro Toronto, it is interesting to track trends for new housing starts in nearby London.
The Forest City has about 10 times the population of The Friendly City, but emerging good news numbers for London certainly bode well for Woodstock.
I have always said that if Woodstock gets new industry, for example, it helps everyone in southern Ontario, especially on the 401 corridor between K-W and London. If houses are being built in London, it indicates somewhat prosperity for Woodstock too.
Here's the latest story on the subject from The London Free Press.
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London-St. Thomas housing starts up in November
Monday, December 10, 2012
November was a good month for London-area housing starts, boosted by construction of a condo building.
LONDON -- Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. (CMHC) reports 296 starts in London-St. Thomas last month, up from 130 in November 2011.
More than half the 2012 total came from one, 165-unit condo building.
But single-family homes also improved with 102 starts, compared to 84 in the same month last year.
“Apartment starts continue to be the story in the London area into November. Demand for apartments based on growth of one- and two-person households between the 2006 and 2011 census counts and continued improvement in employment for 25- to 44-year-olds, has led developers to add new stock,” said Alexander Bonnyman, CMHC’s senior market analyst for London.
Bonnyman said the London area is on track for a substantial improvement in housing starts this year, led by the multi-family sector.
So far in 2012, there have been 2,148 total housing starts, up from 1,612 in the first 11 months of last year. The 2012 total includes 997 multi-family units, versus 530 last year.
Bonnyman noted the apartment sector is playing catch-up. Apartment starts in 2011 were well below the five-year average; apartment starts to date in 2012 are about 15% above that average.
Across Canada, CMHC reported annualized starts down about 3.2% last month. Starts were also down across Ontario, with CMHC noting a drop in condo starts in recent months, mainly in the GTA.
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