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September housing starts are rising in Canada
Support the Construction Challenge and help fund the fight against blood cancers.
Donate to team FIRST ONSITE here or Team Beckett here.
Nominate someone incredible today at: siteserviceawards.com
This episode highlights:
• Lumber Production Cuts and Tariffs: Interfor, one of the world's largest lumber producers, plans to cut timber production in Q4 by approximately 250 million board feet, representing a reduction of around 26%. This decision is driven by a weak lumber market, bad conditions, and ongoing economic uncertainty, which has kept prices "unsustainably low". The Canadian softwood lumber industry faces a significant accumulated tax of 45% when entering the United States, following a recent additional 10% tariff imposed by US President Donald Trump. This environment has led to the indefinite shutdown of the Ear Falls sawmill in Ontario. • Contrasting Housing Market Data: Canada's housing starts trend rose 4.1% in September to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 277,147 units, a gain bolstered by increases in the prairies, Quebec, and Ontario. However, the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) and Hamilton market experienced a significant slump in condo sales, hitting a 35-year low in the third quarter. Condo sales in that region were down 54% from the previous year, with only 319 units sold. Furthermore, there has been a record number of project cancellations year to date, totalling 18 projects, or 4,040 units. • Canada's Largest Mass Timber Prefabrication Project: Intelligent City and Sustainable Development Group have partnered to construct Canada's largest mass timber prefabricated housing project by unit count in Barrie, Ontario. The complex, which involves four mass timber towers sitting atop a two-story concrete base, totals 1,000 units. Intelligent City is starting to implement AI and robot-driven prefabrication to reduce construction time, lower carbon emissions, and require less skilled labor. This scale-up of industrialized timber construction aligns with Prime Minister Mark Carney's commitment to double the rate of new home building and his pledge of $25 billion in federal financing for builders of innovative and prefabricated homes. • Global Prompt Payment Legislation: Following recent prompt payment legislation tabled in BC, the episode features a bonus story about Hong Kong, one of the world's most densely populated regions, implementing its own prompt payment scheme after nine years of consultation. The Hong Kong scheme requires contractors to respond to payment claims within 30 days and mandates that an adjudicator decide on a dispute within 55 working days. The ordinance prohibits "pay when paid" clauses, ensuring subcontractors are paid even if their upstream payer has not received funds. The scheme provides a statutory adjudication process to avoid costly court procedures.
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By SiteNewsSupport the Construction Challenge and help fund the fight against blood cancers.
Donate to team FIRST ONSITE here or Team Beckett here.
Nominate someone incredible today at: siteserviceawards.com
This episode highlights:
• Lumber Production Cuts and Tariffs: Interfor, one of the world's largest lumber producers, plans to cut timber production in Q4 by approximately 250 million board feet, representing a reduction of around 26%. This decision is driven by a weak lumber market, bad conditions, and ongoing economic uncertainty, which has kept prices "unsustainably low". The Canadian softwood lumber industry faces a significant accumulated tax of 45% when entering the United States, following a recent additional 10% tariff imposed by US President Donald Trump. This environment has led to the indefinite shutdown of the Ear Falls sawmill in Ontario. • Contrasting Housing Market Data: Canada's housing starts trend rose 4.1% in September to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 277,147 units, a gain bolstered by increases in the prairies, Quebec, and Ontario. However, the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) and Hamilton market experienced a significant slump in condo sales, hitting a 35-year low in the third quarter. Condo sales in that region were down 54% from the previous year, with only 319 units sold. Furthermore, there has been a record number of project cancellations year to date, totalling 18 projects, or 4,040 units. • Canada's Largest Mass Timber Prefabrication Project: Intelligent City and Sustainable Development Group have partnered to construct Canada's largest mass timber prefabricated housing project by unit count in Barrie, Ontario. The complex, which involves four mass timber towers sitting atop a two-story concrete base, totals 1,000 units. Intelligent City is starting to implement AI and robot-driven prefabrication to reduce construction time, lower carbon emissions, and require less skilled labor. This scale-up of industrialized timber construction aligns with Prime Minister Mark Carney's commitment to double the rate of new home building and his pledge of $25 billion in federal financing for builders of innovative and prefabricated homes. • Global Prompt Payment Legislation: Following recent prompt payment legislation tabled in BC, the episode features a bonus story about Hong Kong, one of the world's most densely populated regions, implementing its own prompt payment scheme after nine years of consultation. The Hong Kong scheme requires contractors to respond to payment claims within 30 days and mandates that an adjudicator decide on a dispute within 55 working days. The ordinance prohibits "pay when paid" clauses, ensuring subcontractors are paid even if their upstream payer has not received funds. The scheme provides a statutory adjudication process to avoid costly court procedures.