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July 12, 2024BUILDING PERMITS, MAY 2024 Monthly (seasonally adjusted, May 2024 vs April 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) fell by 10.4% to $312.5 million. Halifax permits declined by 18.0% to $206.2 million while permits outside the city rose 9.3% to $106.3 million. National permits declined 12.2% to $11.74 billion. Building permit values were up in 4 of 10 provinces, with Manitoba reporting the largest monthly increase. British Columbia reported the steepest decline in building permit values.
Nova Scotia's residential building permits decreased 2.7% to $240.8 million. Halifax residential permits fell 12.3% to $162.1 million. Outside the city, residential permit values rose 25.9% to $78.8 million. National residential building permit values declined 16.3% to $7.12 billion. Residential permit values were up in 4 of 10 provinces, led by Newfoundland and Labrador. British Columbia reported the largest decline in residential permit values.
Nova Scotia's non-residential building permits declined 29.2% to $71.6 million. Halifax permits decreased 33.7% to $44.1 million. Outside the city, non-residential permit values fell 20.7% to $27.5 million. National non-residential building permit values decreased 5.0% to $4.62 billion. Non-residential permit values were up in 6 of 10 provinces, with Manitoba reporting the fastest increase. Newfoundland and Labrador reported the steepest decline.
Year-to-date (January-May 2024 vs January-May 2023)
Nova Scotia's total building permits (residential and non-residential) were up 33.9% in the first five months of the year comparing with the same period in 2023. Halifax permits increased 48.5% and outside the city permit values increased 15.1%. National permits were up 7.2%. Building permit values were up in all provinces except Saskatchewan, led by New Brunswick and Nova Scotia.
In the first five months of 2024, Nova Scotia's residential building permits increased 55.5% compared to the same period in 2023 - the fastest increase among provinces. Halifax residential permits increased 91.6% and outside the city residential permit values increased 15.7%. National residential building permit values increased 8.6%. Residential permit values were up in seven provinces. Saskatchewan reported the largest decline.
Nova Scotia's non-residential building permits fell 4.5% in the first five months of 2024 (compared with the same period in 2023). Halifax permits decreased 14.9% while non-residential permits outside the city rose 13.7%. National non-residential building permit values rose 5.1%. Non-residential permit values were up in 7 of 10 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 five months 2024 (compared with same months of 2023). Non-residential permit values declined in Halifax while they rose outside the city.
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 down in Halifax and up outside of Halifax. Industrial permits rose across the province.
Trends
Overall building permit values have generally been on a rising trend since the middle of 2021, 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. Residential permit values outside the city have been consistently above pre-pandemic levels since 2022.
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 have declined in recent months across the province.
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. After rising in early 2023, Halifax values for industrial building permits have been trending down. Halifax commercial building permits have picked up while industrial and institutional/government projects have been trending down. Outside the city, permits have reached the peak and there is a recent decline in 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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