The total value of building permits issued in Canada decreased by $739.5 million (-5.9%) to $11.7 billion in November, a second consecutive monthly decline. The residential sector led the decrease, followed by the non-residential sector.
On a constant dollar basis (2017=100), the total value of building permits issued in November declined 5.8% from the previous month and was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis.
Chart 1: Total value of building permits, seasonally adjusted
Description - Chart 1
Data table: Total value of building permits, seasonally adjusted
Source: Table 34-10-0285-01.
Infographic 1: Building permits, November 2024
Description - Infographic 1
The title of the infographic is "Building permits, November 2024"
The infographic includes multiple components, such as a map, tables, pictographs and images.
Text in the infographic and the map data are as follows:
Figure 1: Month-to-month change in total value of building permits (seasonally adjusted, current).
This is a map of Canada by province and territory that shows the month-to-month percentage changes of the total building permits value. Green arrows represent an increase, while red arrows represent a decrease.
Building permit values in Canada were down 5.9% in November compared with October. Newfoundland and Labrador was up 8.0%, Prince Edward Island was up 88.4%, Nova Scotia was down 15.4%, New Brunswick was up 3.6%, Quebec was up 2.9%, Ontario was down 9.0%, Manitoba was down 8.4%, Saskatchewan was up 15.3%, Alberta was down 3.6%, British Columbia was down 13.4%, Yukon was down 20.9%, Northwest Territories was down 27.9%, Nunavut was down 94.0%.
Figure 2: Building permits for residential and non-residential construction in Canada (seasonally adjusted, current).
Residential: The total value was down 7.5% month over month.
Non-residential: The total value was down 3.2% month over month.
Single-family dwellings: the total value was $2,851 million, representing a month-over-month decrease of 2.3% or $65.8 million.
Multi-family dwellings: the total value was $4,374 million, representing a month-over-month decrease of 10.7% or $522.3 million.
Industrial: the total value was $901 million, representing a month-over-month decrease of 20.9% or $238.6 million.
Commercial: the total value was $2,067 million, representing a month-over-month increase of 1.3% or $26.3 million.
Institutional: the total value was $1,555 million, representing a month-over-month increase of 4.1% or $60.9 million.
Source: Table 34-10-0285-01, Building permits, by type of building and type of work.
Multi-unit construction intentions push-down the residential sector
The total value of residential permits decreased by $588.1 million (-7.5%) to $7.2 billion in November. Multi-unit construction intentions (-$522.3 million) drove the decrease, while the single-family component (-$65.8 million) contributed modestly to the decline.
The decrease in the multi-unit component in November was driven by British Columbia (-$375.4 million), largely due to lower construction intentions in the Vancouver census metropolitan area (-$346.7 million).
Across Canada, 17,300 multi-family dwellings and 4,700 single-family dwellings were authorized in November, representing a 15.0% monthly decrease in the total number of units approved for construction. The 12-month total number of units authorized from December 2023 to November 2024 rose 2.4% to 273,300, compared with 267,000 units authorized over the same period one year earlier.
Chart 2: Value of building permits for the single-family and multi-family components
Description - Chart 2
Data table: Value of building permits for the single-family and multi-family components
Notes: The higher variability associated with the trend-cycle estimates is indicated with a dotted line on the chart for the current reference month and the previous three months. For more information, see the Note to readers.
Source: Table 34-10-0285-01.
Chart 3: Value of building permits for the residential and non-residential sectors
Description - Chart 3
Data table: Value of building permits for the residential and non-residential sectors
Notes: The higher variability associated with the trend-cycle estimates is indicated with a dotted line on the chart for the current reference month and the previous three months. For more information, see the Note to readers.
Source: Table 34-10-0285-01.
Ontario non-residential sector decrease is mitigated by gains throughout other provinces
Non-residential construction intentions decreased by $151.4 million (-3.2%) to $4.5 billion in November, driven by Ontario (-$414.2 million). Gains in British Columbia (+$139.4 million), Quebec (+$111.9 million), Prince Edward Island (+$74.1 million) and four other provinces tempered the decline. Overall, the industrial component (-$238.6 million) fell, while the institutional (+$60.9 million) and commercial (+$26.3 million) components increased.
Ontario's industrial (-$372.5 million) and commercial (-$159.5 million) components decreased in November, contributing to the decrease in the province's non-residential sector, while the institutional component (+$117.8 million) tempered the decline. In British Columbia, both the institutional (+$92.5 million) and commercial (+$67.0 million) components led the non-residential sector growth in the province. Quebec's non-residential sector was boosted by growth in the industrial component (+$201.5 million), driven by construction projects for a cathode active precursor materials facility in Bécancour and a large transit service centre in Québec. The commercial component (+$98.3 million) also supported Quebec's non-residential sector. Prince Edward Island's institutional component (+$59.0 million) fuelled the province's non-residential increase.
To explore data using an interactive user interface, visit the Building permits: Interactive Dashboard.
For more information on construction, please visit the Construction statistics portal.
For more information on housing, please visit the Housing statistics portal.
Note to readers
Unless otherwise stated, this release presents seasonally adjusted data with current dollar values, which facilitate month-to-month and quarter-to-quarter comparisons by removing the effects of seasonal variations. For information on seasonal adjustment, see Seasonally adjusted data – Frequently asked questions.
For information on trend-cycle data, see the page Trend-cycle estimates – Frequently asked questions.
Data may not add up to totals as a result of rounding.
Building components
- Single-family dwellings: Residential buildings containing only one dwelling unit (e.g., single-detached house, bungalow, linked home [linked at the foundation]).
- Multi-family dwellings: Residential buildings containing multiple dwelling units (e.g., apartment, apartment condominium, row house, semi-detached house).
- Industrial buildings: Buildings used in the processing or production of goods or related to transportation and communication.
- Commercial buildings: Buildings used in the trade or distribution of goods and services, including office buildings.
- Institutional and government buildings: Buildings used to house public and semi-public services, such as those related to health and welfare, education or public administration, and buildings used for religious services.
Revision
Data are subject to revisions based on late responses, methodological changes and classification updates. Unadjusted data have been revised for the previous month. Seasonally adjusted data have been revised for the previous three months.
Reference
Data table: table 34-10-0285-01.
- Note: some data tables may best be viewed on desktop.
Definitions, data sources and methods: survey number 2802.
Previous release: Building permits, October 2024.
Next release: February 11, 2025.
Contact information
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