According to Statistics Canada, the value of building permits issued by Canadian municipalities fell 5.8 percent to $7.0 billion in March, marking a second consecutive monthly decrease. Nationally, the decline was mainly the result of lower construction intentions for multi-family dwellings, particularly in British Columbia and Ontario. All provinces and territories, except Ontario and Quebec, registered decreases in the total value of building permits in March.
Municipalities issued $4.6 billion worth of residential building permits in March, down 8.4 percent from February. A notable decrease in the multi-family component more than offset higher construction intentions for single-family dwellings.
The value of building permits for multi-family dwellings dropped 20.9 percent to $1.9 billion in March, falling below the $2.0 billion mark for the first time since July 2016. Conversely, single-family construction intentions rose 3.0 percent to $2.7 billion in March.
In March, Canadian municipalities approved the construction of 16,821 new dwellings (-14.7 percent compared with February), consisting of 10,745 multi-family units (-19.4 percent) and 6,076 single units (-4.8 percent).
The value of building permits for non-residential structures edged down 0.5 percent to $2.4 billion in March, a second consecutive monthly decline. Lower construction intentions for commercial buildings led the drop, moderated by gains in the institutional and industrial components.
In March, construction intentions for commercial structures fell 7.6 percent to $1.3 billion. The institutional component climbed 9.1 percent to $658 million in March. The value of building permits issued for industrial structures rose 10.5 percent to $440 million in March.