Building Permit Investments rise in January
March 7, 2024 | By HPAC Magazine
Both residential and non-residential sectors saw a double-digit percentage increase to kick off 2024.
Month over month, the total value of building permits in Canada rose 13.5% in January to $10.8 billion, rebounding after a decrease of 11.5% in December.
The residential sector increased 12.6% to $6.5 billion in January, while the non-residential sector grew 14.8% to $4.2 billion.
Gains in the residential sector in January were led by a strong rebound in multi-unit construction intentions (+35.1%), and Ontario (+29.1%) led this increase.
Specifically, multi-unit permits were concentrated in the metropolitan areas of Toronto, Kitchener–Waterloo and London.
Quebec (+61.6%) and British Columbia (+36.7%) also posted notable gains in multi-unit permit values.
The overall residential growth in January was tempered by a decline in the total value of single-family dwelling permits (-10.3%), with declines occurring in nine provinces.
Across Canada, 15,200 new dwellings in multi-unit buildings and 4,000 new single-family dwellings were authorized in January.
The total monthly value of non-residential permits increased 14.8% to $4.2 billion in January, following a 4% decline in December.
The growth was attributed to the commercial component, which increased 34.5% to $2.3 billion, the highest monthly level recorded since April 2023. A $200 million permit for a new data centre in Lévis, Quebec, greatly contributed to the growth in January 2024.
