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June 23, 2026BUILDING CONSTRUCTION, APRIL 2026 Monthly (April vs March 2026, seasonally adjusted)
Investment in Nova Scotia building construction declined 1.6% in April 2026 to $554.0 million. Halifax monthly building construction was down 7.7% to $261.4 million while outside of Halifax building construction was up 4.5% to $292.7 million. Nationally, investment in building construction grew 2.3% with declines in six provinces. Newfoundland and Labrador reported the fastest decline in building construction investment, while British Columbia reported the fastest gain.
Nova Scotia's March 2026 residential construction investment declined 1.5% to $416.7 million. Halifax residential construction was down 9.6% to $197.0 million. Outside of Halifax residential construction was up 7.1% to $219.7 million. National residential construction grew 3.1%, with six provinces reporting declines. Newfoundland and Labrador reported the fastest decline while British Columbia reported the fastest increase.
Nova Scotia's non-residential building construction fell 1.9% to $137.3 million. In Halifax, non-residential construction declined 1.2% to $64.4 million. Outside of Halifax, non-residential construction was down 2.5% to $72.9 million. National non-residential building construction grew 0.7% in April 2026 with gains in six provinces. British Columbia reported the largest gain while Prince Edward Island reported the steepest decline.
Year-to-date (January-April 2026 vs January-April 2025)
Compared to January-April 2025, building construction investment was up 2.1% in Nova Scotia. Halifax construction activity was down 13.5% and outside of Halifax construction activity was up 24.1%. National building construction investment was up 5.9%, 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 3.7% in Nova Scotia compared to January-April 2025. Halifax's residential construction was down 16.9% and outside of Halifax residential construction was up 15.3%. National residential construction was up 6.8% with gains in six provinces. Manitoba and Newfoundland and Labrador reported the fastest gains, while Prince Edward Island experienced the steepest decline.
Nova Scotia's non-residential construction was up 24.6% compared to first four months of 2025, the second fastest gain among provinces, just behind Alberta. Halifax's non-residential construction rose 0.4% while outside of Halifax, non-residential construction was up 57.0%. National non-residential construction investment increased 3.8% compared to first four months of 2025, with gains in seven provinces. Prince Edward Island reported the steepest decline.
Nova Scotia's total building construction investment increased from $2,196 million in January-April 2025 to $2,241 million in January-April 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 slight increase 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, 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.
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, 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. 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 in Halifax grew through 2025 but have since peaked. Outside of Halifax, single unit dwelling investment declined through the second half of 2025 and started rising again in recent months.
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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