Municipalities issued $7.3 billion worth of building permits in May, up 4.5% from April and 3.4% higher than in May 2012.
Fine provinces reported a growth in permits over a year ago led by Ontario (+20.6%), Manitoba (+16.2%), and Quebec (+10.0%). Double-digit annualized decreases over April 2012 occurred in four provinces. Saskatchewan suffered the largest loss (-29.6%) followed by New Brunswick (-25.7%) and Prince Edward Island (-25.3%).
Builders took out residential building permits worth $4.6 billion in May, up 4.2% from April and 7.6% higher than in May 2012. Five provinces reported an annualized growth rate for residential permits led by Ontario (+24.4%), Alberta (+11.2%) and Nova Scotia (+10.0%). Double-digit annualized decreases occurred in three provinces. The largest losses took place in New Brunswick (-21.7%), Saskatchewan (-19.0%) and Prince Edward Island (-12.6%). Quebec’s annualized decline for residential permits was 3.3%.
Municipalities issued permits worth $2.2 billion for multi-family dwellings in May, up 4.0% from April and 21.1% higher than in April 2012. The growth from April to May was the third consecutive month-over-month gain and followed seven monthly decreases in the preceding eight months. The gain was the result of higher construction intentions for apartments and condominiums, in six provinces, primarily Ontario, Alberta and Nova Scotia. Declines occurred in four provinces, with British Columbia posting the largest drop, followed by Saskatchewan. Permits for single-family units increased 4.4% from April to $2.3 billion but were down 2.8% over May 2012. The increase from April to May was the fourth gain in the past five months. Advances were posted in eight provinces, with Ontario, Alberta and Quebec accounting for most of the gain. .
Municipalities approved 20,048 new dwellings in May, up 3.1% from April and 6.2% higher than in May 2012. There was a 2.3% monthly increase but an 8.6% annualized loss in the number of single-family units, which totaled 6,399. There was a 3.5% monthly gain and a 15.0% annualized increase in the number of multi-family units approved, which totaled 13,649.
The value of non-residential permits in May gained 4.2% from March to $2.8 billion but decreased 2.7% from May 2012. From April to May, industrial permits grew 37.4% to $612 million; institutional permits fell 3.6% to $703 million; and commercial sector permits were down 0.6% to $1.54 billion.