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November 12, 2024BUILDING PERMITS, SEPTEMBER 2024 Monthly (seasonally adjusted, September 2024 vs August 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) increased by 21.6% to $276.0 million. Halifax permits rose by 14.5% to $158.8 million while permits outside the city rose 32.7% to $117.3 million. National permits rose 11.5% to $12.97 billion. Total building permit values were up in five provinces, led by Manitoba. British Columbia and Prince Edward Island reported the largest monthly declines in building permit values.
Nova Scotia's residential building permits declined 2.8% to $168.5 million. Halifax residential permits rose 1.7% to $104.7 million. Outside the city, residential permit values fell 9.2% to $63.8 million. National residential building permit values rose 7.5% to $7.74 billion. Residential permit values were down in six of ten provinces, led by Prince Edward Island. Ontario reported the largest gain in residential permit values.
Nova Scotia's non-residential building permits rose 100.2% to $107.5 million. Halifax permits rose 51.8% to $54.1 million. Outside the city, non-residential permit values rose 195.8% to $53.4 million. National non-residential building permit values rose 18.0% to $5.23 billion. Non-residential permit values were up in six of ten provinces, with Manitoba reporting the fastest increase. British Columbia and New Brunswick reported the steepest declines.
Year-to-date (January-September 2024 vs January-September 2023)
Nova Scotia's total building permits (residential and non-residential) were up 12.9% in the first nine months of the year comparing with the same period in 2023. Halifax permits increased 16.0% and outside the city permit values increased 8.3%. National permits were up 3.4%. Building permit values were up in every province except British Columbia, with New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island reporting the fastest increases.
In the first nine months of 2024, Nova Scotia's residential building permits increased 19.2% compared to the same period in 2023. Halifax residential permits increased 24.6% and outside the city residential permit values increased 11.6%. National residential building permit values increased 4.9%. Residential permit values were up in seven provinces year-to-date, led by Newfoundland and Labrador. British Columbia reported the largest decline.
Nova Scotia's non-residential building permits increased 0.4% in the first nine months of 2024 (compared with the same period in 2023). Halifax permits decreased 0.3% while non-residential permits outside the city increased 1.4%. National non-residential building permit values rose 0.9%. Non-residential permit values were up in eight provinces, led by New Brunswick. Quebec reported the largest decline.
Rising residential permit values boosted overall building permit values in Nova Scotia in the first nine months of 2024 (compared with same months of 2023). Non-residential permit values fell slightly in Halifax while they rose outside the city.
There were increases in permit values for single dwelling units in Halifax and a slight decline in the rest of the province. Multiple unit permits rose 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. Halifax residential permit values have trended down in recent months.
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 grown at a slower pace 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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