Municipalities issued $6.6 billion worth of building permits in June, down 10.3% from May and 4.8% lower than in June 2012.
Four provinces reported a growth in permits over a year ago led by New Brunswick (+25.0%), and Alberta (+24.3%). Double-digit annualized decreases over June 2012 occurred in five provinces. Prince Edward Island suffered the largest loss (-59.1%) followed by Nova Scotia (-35.5%) and Quebec (-20.4%). Ontario registered an annualized loss of 8.9%.
Builders took out residential building permits worth $4.0 billion in June, down 12.9% from May and 10.8% lower than in June 2012. Only two provinces reported an annualized growth rate for residential permits: Alberta (+15.8%) and Newfoundland and Labrador (+3.2%). Double-digit annualized decreases occurred in the other eight provinces. The largest losses took place in New Brunswick (-36.1%), Nova Scotia (-30.7%) and Quebec (-24.5%). Ontario’s annualized decline for residential permits was 12.1%.
Municipalities issued permits worth $1.8 billion for multi-family dwellings in June, down 18.8% from May and 6.7% lower than in June 2012. The decline from May to June followed three consecutive month-over-month gains. The loss was the result of lower construction intentions for apartments and condominiums, mainly in Ontario, Quebec, Alberta and Nova Scotia. Ontario posted the largest decline, followed by Quebec. Permits for single-family units decreased 7.4% from May to $2.2 billion and were down 14.0% over June 2012. The decrease from May to June followed four gains in the preceding five months. Declines were posted in seven provinces, with Ontario, Alberta and Quebec accounting for most of the loss.
Municipalities approved 17,656 new dwellings in June, down 12.2% from May and 11.8% lower than in June 2012. There was a 4.1% monthly decrease and a 17.3% annualized loss in the number of single-family units, which totaled 6,115. There was a 16.0% monthly loss and an 8.7% annualized decrease in the number of multi-family units approved, which totaled 11,541.
The value of non-residential permits in June fell 6.1% from May to $2.7 billion but increased 5.8% from June 2012. From May to June, industrial permits fell 21.5% to $493 million; institutional permits rose 14.6% to $820 million; and commercial sector permits were down 9.5% to $1.4 billion.