Saskatchewan leads the way in housing starts

Recent statistics from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation show urban housing starts in Saskatchewan have grown by 108.6 per cent during the first five months of 2025, when compared with the same time last year. That surge in growth has ranked the province first place in Canada for growth in the category. 

“The continued growth in housing starts reflects growing demand for homes,” said Melville-Saltcoats MLA and Minster of Trade and Export Development, Warren Kaeding. “This demand is driven by a strong and growing economy and investment.”

In May alone, urban housing starts have risen 205.9 per cent when compared to May, 2024—placing Saskatchewan in second amongst the provinces for year-over-year growth. Breaking down the numbers even further, work starting on single family homes rose 63.7 per cent while multi-unit residential construction rocketed by 617.9 per cent when comparing May 2025 to the year previous.

“Saskatchewan’s economy continues to show positive momentum and investor confidence,” Kaeding said. “More homes are being built, and more people are living and working across the province than ever before.”

There are a few enticing factors that make Saskatchewan an attractive option for business as Kaeding pointed out.

“Saskatchewan’s stable business environment, low taxes, utility rates, and competitive incentives are bringing opportunity, investment and jobs to the province,” he said. “Initiatives such as Saskatchewan’s Investment Attraction Strategy help to amplify growth in Saskatchewan and ensure continued business investment in the province. This investment supports resilient and vibrant communities for years to come.”

Moosomin made huge waves with their housing accelerator program, offering $30,000 to anyone interested in starting a build, plus more cash incentives for each additional door. With a deadline of 2027 to fulfill 43 new builds, the town is nicely poised to reach that target. At last count, there are 24 multi-unit/other, nine multi-unit/missing middle, and three other. To meet the 2027 goal, there needs to be 12 more new builds in the multi-unit/other category.

“We’re sitting at 37; we need to hit 43, but we do still need another 12 units of multi-unit/other, so we’re actually going to end up over the 43 units,” said Casey McCormac, EDO with Gateway Economic Development. “I actually talked to council the other night and asked them if they wanted to just incentivize the multi-unit/other, but we still have a bit of funding left, so we’re going to continue to keep it open to any type of housing units.”

There is continued momentum around town these days, as McCormac noted. 

“We have a new house going up that just started on Main Street,” she said. “There’s a house on Wright Road, it’s a house with a secondary suite at the bottom of it. Then there’s two more building permits in for houses that haven’t started construction quite yet, but they will be starting hopefully soon.”

As for commercial builds, 2024 certainly noted a sharp increase with the new Borderland Co-op Food Store and IJACK Technologies shop expansion as prime examples.

“We definitely did at the end of last year and beginning of this year,” McCormac said when asked about the rise in local commercial construction. “I’m hoping to see a little bit more happening, but with the Borderline Co-op and IJACK’s shop, there is definitely a lot of money and commercial investment in our area.”

The only problem now is ensuring construction aligns with population demands, with the province officially cracking the 1.25 million people mark this year. As of April 1, Saskatchewan’s population was estimated to be 1,253,569 with a second quarter increase of 20,501 people when compared with the same time last year.

That growth has also extended to Moosomin, though we will need to wait until May 2026 for the official national population census to confirm by how many people.

“Even just with the six-plex and the 24 apartment units that were built, the six-plex is full, and I believe the 24 units are about three-quarters full,” McCormac said. “And that filled up within a month, two months, maybe. We could potentially be a little faster (with construction), but there are definitely people that are still looking for places to live in Moosomin and aren’t able to find them.”

This story was originally published in The World-Spectator. It is republished under a Creative Commons license as part of the Local Journalism Initiative.