Saskatchewan is celebrating leading the country in building construction and being the runner-up in housing starts.
However, the day after Saskatchewan celebrated, the Conservative Party of Canada bashed the “Carney-Trudeau Liberals” for seeing national housing starts plummet annually under their reign.
Saskatchewan issued a release on Tuesday highlighting that building construction investment increased by 27.2 per cent in the province between Jan. 2024 and Jan. 2025. Housing starts in Saskatchewan saw a 115.7 per-cent-increase between Feb. 2024 and Feb. 2025.
The province’s Trade Minister, Warren Kaeding, said the two increases reflect the province’s overall economic strength.
“These numbers translate into more jobs, investment and new projects throughout our communities, which brings added opportunity to everyone who calls Saskatchewan home,” said Kaeding.
The Saskatchewan government also celebrated its real GDP increasing to an all-time high of $77.9 billion in 2023, placing it second nationwide in growth at 2.3 per cent compared to 2022. The province also saw the biggest increase in private capital investment last year and anticipates the second-highest growth this year.
However, while Saskatchewan celebrated its housing increases, the nation saw a decline.
The Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation released data on Monday showcasing that nationwide housing starts were in the red.
“The Carney-Trudeau Liberals have failed to build the homes Canadians need, making rent, mortgages and down payments more expensive for everyone,” said the Conservative Party of Canada in a Monday press release.
Nationwide, housing starts fell 17 per cent annually between Feb. 2024 and Feb. 2025 in cities with over 10,000 people. However, housing starts decreased even more notably in Canada’s most populated cities.
Vancouver and Toronto, Canada’s most expensive cities to buy a home, saw housing starts decrease 48 per cent and 68 per cent, respectively, between Feb. 2024 and Feb. 2025.
“This will make these already unaffordable cities even more expensive,” said the Conservatives.
The party revealed that buying a home in Vancouver costs an average price of $1,188,400, while Toronto’s median price rose to $1,063,300 in February.
Some smaller Canadian cities saw steep declines as well. Kelowna, London, and Halifax saw housing starts decline 67 per cent, 58 per cent, and 50 per cent, respectively.
Provinces as a whole weren’t immune from the decrease either. Nova Scotia, Ontario, and British Columbia saw housing starts decrease by 42 per cent, 36 per cent, and 34 per cent, respectively.
Former prime minister Justin Trudeau previously promised to build almost four million homes by 2031. The pledge would have had to see the country more than double its record housing starts seen in 1976 for the seven years after he made his pledge in Apr. 2024.
“After a decade of the Carney-Trudeau Liberals, housing has never been more expensive. Giving this Liberal Government a fourth term won’t bring any change,” said the Conservatives.