Slow start for building investments in 2024
April 24, 2024 | By HPAC Magazine
Nationally, investment in detached single-family homes increased 1.3% in February, with all provinces and territories apart from Yukon reporting gains.
Statistics Canada has reported that the national month-over-month investment in building construction declined 1.1% to $19.3 billion in February, this follows a similar 0.9% month-over-month decline in January. The overall investment trend is remaining relatively flat in these early months of the year, with residential investment actually showing positive gains in many provinces across the country with the national numbers being dragged down by the largest provinces Ontario and Quebec.
Overall investment in the residential sector decreased 1.2% in February, while investment in the non-residential sector remained relatively flat, falling only 0.9% nationwide.
As noted, the monthly decline in residential construction in February was led by Ontario (-$153 million), while investment in residential building construction edged up in six provinces, led by Newfoundland and Labrador (+$16 million).
Nationally, investment in detached single-family homes increased 1.3% to $6.7 billion in February, with all provinces and territories apart from Yukon reporting gains for this component. At the same time, multi-unit investment decreased 3.5% to $6.7 billion in February, driven by declines in Ontario (-6%) and Quebec (-4.9%) as the pace of new starts slowed from earlier in 2023.
