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Building permits, December 2024. (Source: Statistics Canada, Table 34-10-0285-01, Building permits, by type of building and type of work.)
The total value of building permits rose 11 per cent in December, coming in at $13.1 billion, reports Statistics Canada. The monthly increase was led by a 21.2 per cent increase in the residential sector, which saw a 33.3 per cent boost in multi-unit permit values.
Overall, the total value of residential permits increased by $1.6 billion to $9 billion in December. Multi-unit construction intentions rose by $1.5 billion, contributing the most to the gain. The multi-unit permit increase was primarily attributable to gains in Ontario, where permits were $985.5 million higher than in November, and British Columbia which saw growth of $566 million for the month.
Construction intentions for single-family homes were up 1.8 per cent to $2.9 billion in December, recording gains across six provinces and two territories.
The news was not as rosy in the non-residential sector, where monthly declines in construction intentions were recorded in seven provinces and one territory. Quebec, which was off by $269.1 million from November, led the drop. The total value of non-residential permits fell 5.9 per cent to $4.2 billion in December, marking the third monthly decrease in a row. Declines in the commercial and institutional components more than offset a $126.5 million gain in the industrial component.
The total value of building permits in the fourth quarter edged up $430.8 million, or 1.2 per cent, to reach $37.5 billion, marking the fourth consecutive, albeit slowest, quarterly increase in 2024. In the fourth quarter, the residential sector led the growth, while the non-residential sector retreated after reaching a record high level in the third quarter.
Residential construction intentions grew by $1.8 billion, a rise of eight per cent, to come in at $24.3 billion in the fourth quarter. Multi-family construction intentions contributed a little over 70 per cent of these gains.
Ontario was up $1 billion in multi-family construction intentions in the fourth quarter, leading that category. Major projects in the Toronto census metropolitan area accounted for most of that growth. Alberta and Ontario were the largest gainers in the single-family component.
The value of non-residential building permits declined by $1.4 billion, or 9.3 per cent, to land at $13.3 billion in the fourth quarter. Ontario’s non-residential sector was down $1.1 billion and led the decline, despite reporting its second-highest level in the series. That province’s industrial component was down $824.0 million, and its commercial segment was down $336.0 million.
At a national level, Canada’s industrial component was down $876.1 million, while the commercial component was off by $635.0 million for the quarter. The institutional component was the lone ICI gainer, rising $150.1 million in the fourth quarter of 2024.
Year over year, the total value of building permits issued in Canada increased by $10.5 billion in 2024. The 7.8 per cent gain brought the annual total to $145.3 billion, the highest level since Statistics Canada started tracking this series in 2017. On a constant dollar basis, using 2017 as the baseline, the total value of building permits increased 3.7 per cent in 2024.
The number of units authorized for construction increased by 24,100 to 287,100 in 2024, the second-highest level in the series, driven by the growth of multi-family units, which were up by almost 23,000 units.
Commercial construction intentions experienced a partial rebounded in 2024 after decreasing in 2023 to the second-lowest value on record. The industrial component grew to a series high in 2024 after steadily regaining momentum following the sharp decline in 2020. In 2024, institutional permit values declined but remained strong, sitting at the second-highest level in the series.
In 2024, as in 2023, gains in industrial construction intentions were driven by manufacturing, processing and assembly plants. Specifically, there was growth in permits to develop the battery plant supply chain in 2024, with notable projects being in St. Thomas, Ont., Windsor, Ont., and Bécancour, Que.