Building permit values drop in January
Drops in commercial and multi-family residential activity pulled the total value of building permits down nearly 9 percent in January to $10.1 billion.
Statistics Canada’s monthly report on construction activity shows drops in both the residential (-11.6% to $6.7 billion) and non-residential sectors (-2.7% to $3.4 billion).
The majority of the drop in the residential sector was in the multi-family component (-18.5%), while intentions for single-family homes decreased by 3.8%. Most of the declines for January were in Ontario and British Columbia.
The commercial component decreased by 10.2% in January, pulling the non-residential sector lower. Ontario and British Columbia reported the largest declines in this sector. In British Columbia, the decline signified a return to more normal levels following a strong December.
Intentions in the institutional component were also slightly lower in January (-2.6%). Declines in six provinces were mostly offset by strong growth in Ontario (+68.4%), reflecting a $102 million nursing home permit issued in North Bay.
Those declines were partially offset by a 15.2% increase in the industrial component.