Value of Canadian Building Permits Increases 11.5% in September

On Tuesday, Statistics Canada (StatCan) reported that the total value of building permits in Canada increased $1.3 billion (CAD), or 11.5%, to $13.0 billion in September. This marks the second-highest level since the start of the new series in January 2017. On a constant dollar basis (2017=100), the total value of building permits rose 11.6% in September.

Construction intentions for the residential sector rose $540.7 million, or 7.5%, to $7.7 billion in September, led by the multi-unit component—increasing $505.5 million—while the single-family component only contributed $35.1 million.

The total value of nonresidential building permits increased $797.5 million, or 18.0%, to $5.2 billion in September, driven by gains in the institutional component—up $824.9 million. However, that was offset by losses in the industrial construction component of $17.6 million and in commercial construction component of $9.9 million.

Q3 Review

In Q3, the total value of building permits was $37.0 billion, up $2.0 billion, or 5.6%, from Q2 ($35.1 billion). This marked the third consecutive quarterly increase and the highest quarterly value recorded in the series.

Construction intentions in the residential sector edged increased 0.5%, or $101.1 million, to $22.4 billion in Q3, representing the slowest growth out of the first three quarters of 2024. The increase in Q3 was due to the rise in the single-family home component, which gained $285.9 million following two consecutive quarterly declines. Meanwhile, declines in the multi-unit component—down $184.8 million, the first quarterly decline since the start of the year—moderated the gains in the residential sector.

Construction intentions in the nonresidential sector grew $1.9 billion, or 14.6%, to an all-time high of $14.6 billion in Q3, outpacing the previous record of $13.6 billion reached in 2023Q1. Overall growth in the nonresidential sector was also supported by increases in the institutional component, up $590.1 million, but it was tempered by a slight decline in the commercial component, down $89.9 million.