The planned construction of multi-family dwellings in Ontario plunged in August, according to Statistics Canada’s Building Permits Survey, released October 7.  Across the country, building permits issued by municipalities for multi-family dwellings fell by 28.6 per cent in August, following a 42.8 per cent increase in July.

During the month of August, a total of 16,520 new dwellings, including single-family and multi-family units, were approved for construction in Canada, representing an 18.9 per cent decline from July. The decrease in permits can be largely attributed to reduced construction intentions for multi-family dwellings. From July, multi-family residential construction fell 26.3 per cent to 10,320 units. Single-family dwellings were also down, albeit much less significantly.

Regional highlights suggest that lower construction intentions for non-residential buildings in Quebec and residential buildings in Ontario are mainly responsible for the national decline. While the largest decreases were seen in Montreal and Toronto, lower construction intentions for multi-family dwellings were also seen in Vancouver and other census metropolitan areas.

Of the 34 Canadian census metropolitan areas surveyed, 22 saw declines in the number of permits for both residential and non-residential construction. Statistics Canada’s Building Permits Survey covers 2,400 municipalities representing 95 per cent of the Canadian population.