Statistics Canada: Building Permits October 2022

The total value of building permits in Canada declined 1.4% in October to $10.0 billion. Losses in the residential sector more than offset gains from the non-residential sector.

On a constant dollar basis (2012=100), the total value of building permits decreased 0.9% to $6.0 billion.

Residential sector cools off for second month

The value of residential permits declined 6.4% to $6.5 billion nationally in October. Similarly, the number of new residential units decreased 4.6%, mainly due to single-family dwellings (-9.3%) which fell for the fifth consecutive month.

The value of building permits in the multi-family component decreased 6.9%, with Ontario posting its second consecutive decline after reaching its peak in August. Nova Scotia also recorded a large decline following its record high in September.

The single-family homes component declined 5.8% in October as eight provinces posted a drop in construction intentions. Conversely, Manitoba saw a notable increase of 14.3% following two weaker months.

Ontario pushes up non-residential sector

The total permit value of the non-residential sector increased 9.5% to $3.5 billion in October.

Construction intentions in the commercial component sharply increased by 18.0% in October. Ontario posted the largest gain, with multiple projects valuing over $20 million, while in September, one permit was reported above this level.

The value of building permits in the industrial component sharply increased by 16.2%, largely due to Ontario, which reported a $114 million permit for a water/sewer project in Erin. New Brunswick also posted notable gains, with three projects valuing over $5 million each.

The institutional component continued to slow as it dropped 17.1% in October, following a 38.2% decrease the previous month, reaching its lowest value since May 2020.

To explore data using an interactive user interface, visit the Building permits: Interactive Dashboard.

To explore the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the socioeconomic landscape, please consult the Canadian Economic Dashboard and COVID-19.

For more information on housing, please visit the Housing statistics portal.

Statistics Canada has a Housing Market Indicators dashboard. This web application provides access to key housing market indicators for Canada, by province and by census metropolitan area. The indicators are updated automatically with new information from monthly releases, giving users access to the latest data.

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.

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, as well as buildings used for religious services.

Revision

Data are subject to revisions based on late responses, methodological changes and classification updates. Unadjusted data has been revised for the previous month. Seasonally adjusted data has been revised for the previous three months.

For information on trend-cycle data, see the StatCan Blog and Trend-cycle estimates – Frequently asked questions.

Next release

Data on building permits for November will be released on January 4, 2023.

Source: Statistics Canada