Municipalities issued $6.1 billion worth of building permits in January, down 12.9% from December and 13.6% lower than in January 2014.
Prince Edward Island was the only province to report an increase in permits over a year ago (+7.8%). The largest year-over-year losses were recorded in Newfoundland and Labrador (-57.7%) followed by Nova Scotia (-31.7%) and Saskatchewan (-29.2%). Ontario recorded a 6.2% annualized decline, while Quebec’s loss was 0.4%.
Builders took out residential building permits worth $4.1 billion in January, down 7.0% from December and 12.2% lower than in January 2014. Only two provinces reported an annualized growth rate for residential permits: Prince Edward Island led the way (+63.5%) followed by Ontario (+3.6%). Double-digit annualized decreases occurred in six provinces. The largest losses were recorded in Newfoundland and Labrador (-32.9%), followed by Nova Scotia (-32.2%) and Saskatchewan (-32.0%). Quebec’s annualized decrease was 23.3%.
Municipalities issued permits worth $1.5 billion for multi-family dwellings in January, down 21.0% from December and 34.1% lower than in January 2014. Month-over-month declines occurred in nine provinces, with Ontario registering by far the largest drop. Saskatchewan was the lone province to post an increase. Permits for single-family units amounted to $2.6 billion, up 3.5% from December, and 8.5% higher than in January 2014. Monthly increases were posted in four provinces, led by Ontario and Quebec.
Municipalities approved 14,888 new dwellings in January, down 7.5% from December and 19.9% lower than in January 2014. There was a 0.9% monthly increase and a 0.1% annualized gain in the number of single-family units, which totaled 6,378. There was a 12.9% monthly decline and a 30.3% annualized decrease in the number of multi-family units approved, which totaled 8,510.
The value of non-residential permits in January fell 22.8% from December to $2.0 billion and decreased 16.3% from January 2014. From December to January, industrial permits declined 22.8% to $337 million but were up 12.0% from January 2014; institutional permits decreased 49.8% from December to $387 million and were down 37.0% from a year earlier; while commercial sector permits fell 8.0% from December to $1.3 billion, and were down 13.4% from January 2014. The institutional loss came mainly from decreased construction intentions in six provinces, with Alberta and, to a lesser extent, British Columbia accounting for much of the monthly decrease. In the commercial sector, the decrease came from lower construction intentions for a variety of buildings. The value of commercial permits decreased in seven provinces, notably in British Columbia, Alberta and Ontario. The industrial decrease mainly resulted from lower construction intentions for manufacturing plants and transportation-related buildings. Gains were recorded in four provinces, led by Quebec.