Home construction has been on a tear in Alberta with annual housing starts forecast to set an all-time record this year.

The latest permit data (which indicates what is planned rather than what is actually under construction) supports this trend, but points to somewhat slower activity over the second half of the year.

The number of new dwelling units to be created was 1% lower in the second quarter. Despite this modest quarter-over-quarter pullback, the number of planned units stood 20% higher over the first half of the year compared to the same six months in 2024.

Construction intentions, however, were not evenly distributed across single-detached and multi-dwelling projects.

According to the permits issued in the second quarter, the number of single-detached homes to be created was 11% lower than in Q1 whereas the number of planned units in multi-dwelling projects was up by 3%.

The emphasis on multi-dwelling projects is even more evident in the year-to-date tally with the number of units in multi-dwelling buildings up by 25% over the first half of the year compared to 9% for single-detached homes.

Of the 30,606 units for which permits were issued between January and July, 73% (22,398) were in multi-family developments.

We will get numbers for housing starts in July early next week. In the meantime, our June forecast pegs housing starts to total a record 51,700 units this year.

Answer to the previous trivia question: The Eiffel Tower can grow up to six inches taller during hot summers due to the expansion of its iron structure.

Today’s trivia question: Who won the 100-metres sprint on August 14, 2016 at the Rio de Janeiro Games, becoming the first person to win the event in three consecutive Olympics?