The value of building permits rose 5.4% to $6.7 billion in April,
following a 12.3% advance in March. Compared with April 2009, the value
of building permits has increased by 48.2%. The gain in April was due
to the non-residential sector, which more than offset the decline in
the residential sector.
In the non-residential sector, the value of permits rose for a third
consecutive month, up 32.2% to $2.8 billion. The increase was
attributable to gains in both construction intentions for institutional
buildings in six provinces and in commercial permits in seven provinces.
In the residential sector, the value of permits fell 8.0% from March
to $3.9 billion, mostly because of declines in single- and multi-family
permits in British Columbia, Ontario and Quebec.
The total value of permits was up in five provinces, led by Ontario,
Nova Scotia and Alberta, while British Columbia recorded the steepest
decline.
Non-residential sector: Increases in both institutional and commercial components
The institutional component increased 70.0% to $882 million in
April. The advance was largely a result of higher construction
intentions for educational institutions in Ontario and medical
buildings in Nova Scotia.
Note to readers
Unless otherwise stated, this release presents seasonally adjusted
data, which eases comparisons by removing the effects of seasonal
variations.
The Building Permits Survey covers 2,400 municipalities
representing 95% of the population. It provides an early indication of
building activity.
The communities representing the other 5% of the population are very
small, and their levels of building activity have little impact on the
total.
The value of planned construction activities shown in this release
excludes engineering projects (e.g., waterworks, sewers or culverts)
and land.
For the purpose of this release, the census metropolitan area of
Ottawa–Gatineau (Ontario/Quebec) is divided into two areas: Gatineau
part and Ottawa part.
Revision
Preliminary data are provided for the current reference month.
Revised data, based on late responses, are updated for the previous
month.
In the commercial component, the value of permits increased 29.1%
to $1.5 billion. The advance was mostly attributable to construction
intentions for office buildings and retail stores in Alberta and
Ontario.
Following three consecutive monthly increases, the value of
industrial building permits declined 4.7% to $415 million in April.
Alberta posted the largest decrease while Ontario recorded the biggest
gain.
Residential sector: Intentions down for single- and multi-family permits
The value of building permits for single-family dwellings
decreased 6.0% in April to $2.6 billion, a result of declines in
Quebec, Ontario and Newfoundland and Labrador.
Following a strong gain in March, municipalities issued $1.3 billion
in building permits for multi-family dwellings in April, down 11.7%
from a month earlier. British Columbia was by far the province with the
largest decrease in the value of multi-family permits, followed by
Ontario and Quebec.
Municipalities approved the construction of 18,089 new dwellings in
April, down 7.3% from March. The decrease was due to an 8.2% decline in
the number of multi-family dwellings to 9,237 and a 6.4% decline in the
number of single-family dwellings to 8,852.
Increases seen in half the provinces
In April, the value of building permits was up in five provinces.
Ontario, Nova Scotia and Alberta posted the largest advances. In
Ontario, increases in all non-residential components more than offset
the decline in residential components. Nova Scotia's gain was
attributable to both the institutional component and multi-family
permits. In Alberta, the increase came from both the residential and
non-residential sectors.
British Columbia and Quebec posted the sharpest decreases. Following
a strong advance in March, British Columbia showed the biggest drop in
the residential and non-residential sectors. The lower value of permits
in Quebec was due to the residential sector.
Increases in half the census metropolitan areas
The total value of permits was up in 17 of the 34 census metropolitan areas.
In Edmonton, the value of permits doubled as a result of gains in
all residential and non-residential components. The value of permits
rose in Toronto and in Windsor, mainly because of increases in all of
the non-residential sector's components.
In contrast, Vancouver and Calgary posted the largest declines.
Vancouver's decrease was due to permits for multi-family dwellings and
permits for institutional buildings. The decline in Calgary was
attributable to all components in the non-residential sector.