The national housing agency said the seasonally adjusted annual rate of housing starts was 223,808 units in September, up from 213,012 in August.

Demand has been relatively flat for the past 20 years, but now it is building and shows no signs of levelling off, IESO officials say.

Values for August dropped by 7%, or just over $858 million, to reach $11.5 billion. This follows an increase of almost 21% in July.

The Q3 report from consultants RLB show 83 tower cranes in use the city. That figure is down significantly from previous reports, which used a much larger catchment area.

The first government bill to be introduced when the legislature resumes sitting next week will focus on tackling gridlock, the province said.