The latest stats on Canadian building permits confirms the leading role being played by the multifamily sector.
Residential permits issued by municipalities had a total value of $5.4 billion in March, up 2.3% month-over-month.
The multifamily sector showed “a notable increase” Statistics Canada says, with a 12.2% increase to a record $3.0 billion. The single-family sector was down 7.9% to $2.4 billion.
The rise for multifamily intentions was driven by apartment buildings and was driven by Quebec and British Columbia. Rowhouses also saw a strong gain.
Ontario posted the largest decline in single-family permits, down 13.7% or $153.1 million. In the Toronto CMA the decline was 27.6% or $302.3 million, the second consecutive monthly decline.
Overall, eight provinces posted declining residential permit figures, with the strong performance of Quebec (+$378.8 million) and BC (+$179.5 million) boosting the national total.
Non-residential permits up 4.5%
The value of permits issued for non-residential structures was $3.0 billion in March, up 4.5% from February (which had posted a 6.4% decline).
The commercial sector gained 10% to $1.7 billion while the institutional component was down 12.7% to $647.7 million with lower intentions for hospitals affecting the nationwide trend.
For CRE it was the industrial component that saw the largest gain (11.6% to $666.5 million) with primary industry buildings including farm buildings and greenhouses leading.
The total value of residential and non-residential permits issued was up 3.1% to $8.4 billion in March, following a 2.8% decline in February.
