Housing starts in Grande Prairie are up for the second straight month. Construction started on 20 new single family homes and 6 multi-unit buildings in June, up from two each a year ago.
According to the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, the 550 per cent monthly increase has brought the year-to-date total to 88 overall. That is still down about a third from the pace set through the first six months of 2016.
In the second quarter of the year, the County of Grande Prairie also saw a major jump in new home construction. Work got started on 64 single units and 12 for multiple tenants, well more than the 29 overall that got underway in the spring of 2016.
Over the first half of the year, building numbers are still down close to 30 per cent. In both communities, it is the multi-family sector that is driving down levels.