Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. says the annual pace of housing starts in June posted its largest month-over-month increase in a decade powered by work beginning on new multi-unit projects.

The national housing agency says the seasonally adjusted annual rate of housing starts in Canada totalled 281,373 units in June, up from 200,018 in May.

The increase came as the annual pace of urban starts increased 46 per cent to 262,815 units in June. The rate of multi-unit urban starts rose 59 per cent to 219,914, while the rate of starts for single-detached urban homes increased three per cent to 42,901.

The annual rate of housing starts in Vancouver in June was up 71 per cent from May, while Toronto doubled the pace set in the previous month.

CMHC estimated the annual pace of rural starts at 18,558 units for June.

The six-month moving average of the annual pace of housing starts was 234,974 units in June, up from 229,520 units in May.

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