Municipalities issued $6.7 billion worth of building permits in August, down 27.3% from July but 2.4% higher than in August 2013.
Three provinces reported an increase in permits over a year ago. The largest increase was recorded in Newfoundland and Labrador (+46.1%) followed by Alberta (+31.4%) and Prince Edward Island (+12.6%). Double-digit annualized decreases over August 2013 occurred in three provinces. The largest year-over-year losses were recorded in Manitoba (-26.7%) followed by New Brunswick (-13.7%) and British Columbia (-11.1%). Ontario experienced a 3.7% annualized loss while Quebec recorded a 2.4% year-over-year decline.
Builders took out residential building permits worth $4.2 billion in August, down 15.9% from July but 4.3% higher than in August 2013. Three provinces reported annualized growth rate for residential permits: Alberta led the way (+34.4%) followed by Saskatchewan (+16.3%) and Quebec (+5.8%). Double-digit annualized decreases occurred in four provinces. The largest lose was recorded in Prince Edward Island (-28.7%), followed by Nova Scotia (-25.2%) and New Brunswick (-22.7%). Ontario’s annualized decrease was 7.6%.
Municipalities issued permits worth $1.8 billion for multi-family dwellings in August, down 28.6% from July but 2.5% higher than in August 2013. Month-over-month losses occurred in six provinces, led by Ontario with British Columbia a distant second. Alberta and Saskatchewan registered the largest increases. Permits for single-family units decreased 2.4% from July to $2.3 billion but were up 5.8.% over August 2013. Monthly declines were posted in seven provinces, with the largest drops occurring in Ontario and Alberta. Quebec saw the largest increase, followed by British Columbia.
Municipalities approved 16,520 new dwellings in August, down 18.9% from July and 7.4% lower than in August 2013. There was a 2.7% monthly decrease but a 0.5% annualized gain in the number of single-family units, which totaled 6,200. There was a 26.3% monthly loss and an 11.6% annualized decrease in the number of multi-family units approved, which totaled 10,320.
The value of non-residential permits in August fell 40.6% from July to $2.5 billion and decreased 0.5% from August 2013. From July to August, industrial permits lost 15.2% to $454 million and were down 16.8% from August 2013; institutional permits decreased 76.0% from July to $446 million and were down 17.6% from a year earlier; while commercial sector permits fell 12.1% from July to $1.6 billion, but were up 12.3% from August 2013. The institutional loss came mainly from decreased construction intentions for medical facilities in Quebec and Manitoba. In the commercial sector, the decrease came from lower construction intentions for warehouses and office buildings.