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May 09, 2022BUILDING PERMITS, MARCH 2022 Month over month (seasonally adjusted, Mar 2022 vs. Feb 2022)
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) decreased 14.6% to $188.4 million. Halifax permits decreased 10.0% to $101.6 million. Outside the city, permit values decreased 19.5% to $86.8 million. National permits decreased 9.3% to $11.67 billion. Building permit values were up in 4 of 10 provinces, led by Saskatchewan and Newfoundland and Labrador. Prince Edward Island and Manitoba reported the largest declines.
Nova Scotia's residential building permits decreased 13.4% to $146.8 million. Halifax residential permits decreased 5.0% to $77.9 million. Outside the city, residential permit values decreased 21.3% to $68.9 million. National residential building permit values increased 4.7% to $7.94 billion. Residential permit values were up in 5 of 10 provinces, led by Saskatchewan and British Columbia. Prince Edward Island and Nova Scotia reported the largest declines.
Nova Scotia's non-residential building permits decreased 18.5% to $41.6 million. Halifax permits decreased 23.1% to $23.8 million. Outside the city, non-residential permit values decreased 11.3% to $17.9 million. National non-residential building permit values decreased 29.5% to $3.72 billion. Non-residential permit values were up in 4 of 10 provinces, led by Newfoundland and Labrador and New Brunswick. Prince Edward Island and British Columbia reported the largest declines.
Year-to-date (Jan-Mar 2022 vs. Jan-Mar 2021)
Nova Scotia's total building permits (residential and non-residential) increased 35.3% to $593.9 million. Halifax permits increased 62.7% to $314.6 million. Outside the city, permit values increased 13.7% to $279.3 million. National permits increased 10.7% to $34.86 billion. Building permit values were up in 8 of 10 provinces, led by Newfoundland and Labrador and British Columbia. Prince Edward Island was the only province to report a decline. Building permit values were unchanged in Ontario.
Nova Scotia's residential building permits increased 32.8% to $467.7 million. Halifax residential permits increased 42.8% to $241.4 million. Outside the city, residential permit values increased 23.6% to $226.3 million. National residential building permit values increased 0.3% to $22.36 billion. Residential permit values were up in 8 of 10 provinces, led by Newfoundland and Labrador and Nova Scotia. Manitoba and Ontario reported declines.
Nova Scotia's non-residential building permits increased 45.4% to $126.1 million. Halifax permits increased 201.0% to $73.2 million. Outside the city, non-residential permit values decreased 15.1% to $53.0 million. National non-residential building permit values increased 36.2% to $12.50 billion. Non-residential permit values were up in 9 of 10 provinces, led by British Columbia and Saskatchewan. Prince Edward Island was the only province to report a decline.
Overall building permit values in Nova Scotia increased in the first quarter of 2022 compared with the first quarter of 2021. This reflects an increase in most residential and non-residential permit types across the province, with the exception of institutional/government buildings.
Trends
After declining in early 2020, Nova Scotia's building permits values have grown significantly - starting first with residenial construction permits in late 2020 and followed by non-residential permits in late 2021. The rise in residential permits was stronger outside Halifax while non-residential permit values in the city accounted for the recent uptick.
Trends in residential permit values reflect the differences in housing markets for Halifax and the rest of the province. Halifax residential permits were more concentrated in multi-unit dwellings in 2019. Since the middle of 2020, both single and multiple dwelling unit permits have trended up - particularly in parts of Nova Scotia outside Halifax.
Non-residential building permits have lower values than residential permits. Halifax non-residential building permits have been increasing since the middle of 2021. Commercial projects generally account for the bulk of non-residential building permit values. Commercial permits in Halifax had an upward trend since June 2021. Commercial project building permit values outside Halifax have been flat in recent months. Industrial building permits have also moved upwards in recent months.
Source: Statistics Canada. Table 34-10-0066-01 Building permits, by type of structure and type of work (x 1,000)
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