Building Permits, November 2014, published January 9

Posted by on Jan 20, 2015 in Featured | 0 comments

Municipalities issued $6.6 billion worth of building permits in November, down 13.8% from October and 2.7% lower than in November 2013.      

Three provinces reported an increase in permits over a year ago.  The largest increase was recorded in Manitoba (+57.9%) followed by Nova Scotia (+10.6%).  The largest year-over-year losses were recorded in New Brunswick (-43.3%) followed by Newfoundland and Labrador (-35.4%) and Prince Edward Island (-34.3%).  Ontario recorded a 22.4% annualized decline, while Quebec’s gain was 3.5%.

Builders took out residential building permits worth $4.4 billion in November, down 3.1% from October but 5.9% higher than in November 2013.  Six provinces reported an annualized growth rate for residential permits: Manitoba led the way (+44.3%) followed by Ontario (+24.6%) and Prince Edward Island (+18.5%).  Double-digit annualized decreases occurred in three provinces.  The largest losses were recorded in Newfoundland and Labrador (-35.8%), followed by British Columbia (-15.8%) and Saskatchewan (-12%).  Quebec’s annualized increase was 1.1%.

Municipalities issued permits worth $2.0 billion for multi-family dwellings in November, down 3.5% from October but 6.3% higher than in November 2013.  Month-over-month declines occurred in six provinces, led by Alberta and British Columbia.  The largest gain was reported in Ontario.  Permits for single-family units amounted to $2.4 billion, down 3.5% from October, but 6.3% higher than in November 2013.  Monthly declines were posted in seven provinces, with the largest losses occurring in Saskatchewan and Quebec.  Ontario, British Columbia and New Brunswick registered gains.

Municipalities approved 16,899 new dwellings in November, down 8.8% from October and 6.7% lower than in November 2013.  There was a 4.1% monthly decrease but a 0.4% annualized gain in the number of single-family units, which totaled 6,122.  There was an 11.2% monthly decline and a 10.2% annualized decrease in the number of multi-family units approved, which totaled 10,777.

The value of non-residential permits in November fell 29.2% from October to $2.2 billion and decreased 16.0% from November 2013.  From October to November, industrial permits declined 43.1% to $376 million and were down 13.5% from November 2013; institutional permits decreased 24.9% from October to $684 million but were up 96.2% from a year earlier; while commercial sector permits fell 25.8% from October to $1.2 billion, and were down 37.5% from November 2013.  The institutional gain came mainly from decreased construction intentions for medical facilities, primarily in British Columbia.  In the commercial sector, the decrease came from lower construction intentions for a variety of   buildings.  The value of commercial permits increased in four provinces, notably in Ontario.  The industrial increase mainly resulted from lower construction intentions for manufacturing plants and utilities especially in Ontario, Alberta  and Quebec.*