Oshawa sets four building records in July

DurhamRegion.com
Aug. 18, 2017 05:00 by
Reka Szekely

Oshawa set four new building records in July driven by growth in the townhouse market.

July 2017 had the highest number of building permits issued in one month, with 626 permits. That included 555 new homes with 438 townhouses, 73 detached houses, 16 semis, 18 apartment units and 10 home additions.

In addition to the highest monthly permits, Oshawa also set a record for highest residential permit value in one month at nearly $130 million, surpassing the previous record set in December 2016 by $3.7 million.

July also represented the highest total construction value at $145 million, surpassing a record set in 2015 by $30 million.

The record number of permits issued for townhouses obliterated the previous record of 262 units in one month set in March 1976.

Coun. John Aker, chair of Oshawa’s development services committee, said the records substantiated the Conference Board of Canada’s report which stated that Oshawa is expected to have one of the fastest growing economies in Canada among medium-sized cities.

“It is very important for Oshawa be part of the economic development that’s happening in the GTA,” he said. “We are very proud of some of the projects that are under construction in Oshawa at this time and are going to be proud of some of the projects that are coming in the future.”

He’s not surprised that developers continue to build new housing in Oshawa despite a slowing real estate market.

“Home prices in Oshawa have increased but not as much as other communities so any retraction in the housing market here will not be significant,” Aker predicted, adding that Oshawa compares favourable to communities like Markham or Vaughan when it comes to value for new buyers.

Chief building official Mike Leonard complimented his staff who dealt with the large volume of permit applications.

“After the exceptional effort by our plans examiners and administration staff to issue this record volume, the workload now turns to our building inspectors to ensure that all of this construction is properly completed,” he said.

Oshawa has kept monthly building records since 1965. For more information on building permits and inspections visit www.oshawa.ca/permits.