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September 12, 2024BUILDING PERMITS, JULY 2024 Monthly (seasonally adjusted, July 2024 vs June 2024)
Changes in monthly building permit values are typically very volatile, with large swings from one month to the next.
Nova Scotia's total building permits (residential and non-residential) grew by 4.0% to $267.6 million. Halifax permits rose by 13.1% to $168.7 million while permits outside the city declined 8.4% to $98.8 million. National permits rose 22.1% to $12.4 billion. Total building permit values were up in seven provinces, led by British Columbia. Newfoundland and Labrador reported the steepest decline in building permit values.
Nova Scotia's residential building permits increased 13.9% to $177.9 million. Halifax residential permits rose 40.5% to $101.8 million. Outside the city, residential permit values fell 9.1% to $76.1 million. National residential building permit values rose 16.7% to $7.59 billion. Residential permit values were up in 8 of 10 provinces, led by British Columbia. Manitoba and Newfoundland and Labrador reported the only declines in residential permit values.
Nova Scotia's non-residential building permits fell 11.2% to $89.6 million. Halifax permits declined 12.8% to $66.9 million. Outside the city, non-residential permit values declined 6.1% to $22.7 million. National non-residential building permit values rose 31.8% to $4.80 billion. Non-residential permit values were up in 7 of 10 provinces, with British Columbia and Saskatchewan reporting the fastest increases. Prince Edward Island reported the steepest decline.
Year-to-date (January-July 2024 vs January-July 2023)
Nova Scotia's total building permits (residential and non-residential) were up 22.3% in the first seven months of the year comparing with the same period in 2023. Halifax permits increased 29.4% and outside the city permit values increased 12.4%. National permits were up 2.5%. Building permit values were up in eight out of ten provinces, led by Prince Edward Island and New Brunswick. Quebec and British Columbia reported the only declines.
In the first seven months of 2024, Nova Scotia's residential building permits increased 31.3% compared to the same period in 2023. Halifax residential permits increased 41.7% and outside the city residential permit values increased 17.7%. National residential building permit values increased 5.3%. Residential permit values were up in eight provinces year-to-date, led by Newfoundland and Labrador. Ontario and British Columbia reported the only declines.
Nova Scotia's non-residential building permits rose 4.6% in the first seven months of 2024 (compared with the same period in 2023). Halifax permits increased 7.1% while non-residential permits outside the city rose 0.4%. National non-residential building permit values fell 1.8%. Non-residential permit values were up in seven provinces, led by New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island. Quebec reported the largest decline.
Rising residential as well as non-residential permit values boosted overall building permit values in Nova Scotia in the first seven months of 2024 (compared with same months of 2023).
There were increases for single dwelling unit as well as multiple unit permits across the province.
Non-residential permit values were down in commercial projects across the province. Institutional and government building permits were up across the province. Industrial permits fell in Halifax and rose in the rest of the province.
Trends
Overall building permit values have generally been on a rising trend for several years, though there have been periods of declining values over this period. Rising permit values are mostly driven by higher residential permits within Halifax as well as outside the city.
After trending down in late 2022 and early 2023, residential permit values started to rise again in Halifax in the middle of 2023.
Nova Scotia's non-residential building permit values started to rise in early 2023 before reaching a plateau through the end of the year. Non-residential permit values continue to increase in Halifax while declining in the rest of Nova Scotia, resulting in a continuation of the current plateau.
Trends in residential permit values reflect the differences in housing markets for Halifax and the rest of the province. In Halifax, growth in permit values for multi-unit dwellings has outpaced growth in single-dwelling unit permits. Outside the city the situation is reversed, where single dwelling unit permits are more common than permits for multi-unit structures.
Non-residential building permits have lower values than residential permits. In Halifax, non-residential permits have been trending upward in recent months due to rising commercial and institutional/governmental projects. After rising in early 2023, Halifax values for industrial building permits subsequently declined and have been flat in recent months. Outside the city, permits have reached the peak and there is a decline in commercial and institutional/government permits.
Source: Statistics Canada. Table 34-10-0285-01 Building permits, by type of structure and type of work (x 1,000)
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