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May 25, 2026BUILDING CONSTRUCTION, MARCH 2026 Monthly (March vs February 2026, seasonally adjusted)
Investment in Nova Scotia building construction declined 1.7% in March 2026 to $555.9 million. Halifax monthly building construction was down 2.0% to $284.2 million while outside of Halifax building construction was down 1.5% to $271.6 million. Nationally, investment in building construction declined 1.3% with declines in six provinces. Prince Edward Island reported the fastest decline in building construction investment, while Newfoundland and Labrador reported the fastest gain.
Nova Scotia's February 2026 residential construction investment declined 2.0% to $419.1 million. Halifax residential construction was down 2.8% to $218.7 million. Outside of Halifax residential construction was down 1.0% to $200.4 million. National residential construction declined 2.2%, with six provinces reporting declines. Prince Edward Island reported the fastest decline while Newfoundland and Labrador reported the fastest increase.
Nova Scotia's non-residential building construction fell 1.0% to $136.8 million. In Halifax, non-residential construction grew 1.0% to $65.5 million. Outside of Halifax, non-residential construction was down 2.8% to $71.3 million. National non-residential building construction grew 0.6% in March 2026 despite declines in six provinces. British Columbia reported the largest gain while Prince Edward Island reported the steepest decline.
Year-to-date (January-March 2026 vs January-March 2025)
Compared to January-March 2025, building construction investment was up 0.4% in Nova Scotia. Halifax construction activity was down 14.7% and outside of Halifax construction activity was up 23.4%. National building construction investment was up 2.0%, with gains in eight provinces. The fastest growth was reported in Newfoundland and Labrador and Manitoba while Prince Edward Island reported the fastest decline.
Residential construction investment was down 5.6% in Nova Scotia compared to January-March 2025. Halifax's residential construction was down 18.6% and outside of Halifax residential construction was up 14.5%. National residential construction was up 1.8% with gains in six provinces. Manitoba reported the fastest gain, while Prince Edward Island experienced the steepest decline.
Nova Scotia's non-residential construction was up 25.5% compared to first three months of 2025, the fastest gain among provinces. Halifax's non-residential construction rose 2.1% while outside of Halifax, non-residential construction was up 57.5%. National non-residential construction investment increased 2.7% compared to first three months of 2025, with gains in five provinces. Prince Edward Island reported the steepest decline.
Nova Scotia's total building construction investment increased from $1,681 million in January-March 2025 to $1,688 million in January-March 2026. Lower residential investment in Halifax was partially offset by higher residential investment outside of Halifax. Non-residential investment increased across the province.
Residential investment declines were concentrated in multiple unit dwellings in Halifax, with a smaller decline outside of Halifax. Investment in singles was up across the province.
Non-residential building construction investment was up most for institutional/government projects outside of Halifax. There were smaller gains for commercial investment across the province, as well as industrial in Halifax.
In Halifax, the year-to-date decline in building construction was led by a decline in multi-unit residential investment, followed by lower institutional/government investment. Outside of Halifax, gains were led by institutional/government investment, slightly offset by industrial projects and multiple unit dwellings.
Trends
Building construction has trended up over recent years, particularly from rising residential investment. Residential investment (and therefore total investment) exhibits peaks and troughs around a rising trend. Non-residential investment has been on a more gradual increasing trend.
In Halifax, residential construction investment had trended up for multi-unit dwellings from late 2024 to the summer of 2025, when it peaked. Single unit dwelling investments have been on a rising trend since summer 2025. Outside of Halifax, single unit dwelling investment declined through the second half of 2025 and started rising again in recent months. In Halifax, multiple dwelling unit buildings are a larger share of investment than single dwelling units in Halifax, while the opposite is true outside of the city.
Non-residential building construction has lower values than residential construction. Non-residential investment has been steadily increasing since 2023 due to growth in institutional/government building construction.
Halifax commercial and institutional/government building construction plateaued in 2025 and have declined in recent months, while industrial projects continue to grow. Outside the city, non-residential investment levels continue to grow on rising institutional/government and commercial building investments.
Statistics Canada. Table 34-10-0293-01 Investment in Building Construction
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