Canadian building permits down by 5.5% in June

Slowdown in construction plans for apartments and condos in B.C. and Ontario led to a decline far below predictions of a 1.5 per cent gain in June

A slowdown in construction plans for apartments and condominium complexes in B.C. and Ontario led to a 5.5 per cent decline in the value of Canadian permits, far below experts’ predictions of a 1.5 per cent gain for that month.
 
According to Statistics Canada data released on Monday (August 8), May 2016 numbers were also revised downward from a 1.9 per cent decline to a 2.1 per cent shrinkage.
 
The June slump accompanied a 5.0 drop in residential building permits as intentions for multi-family buildings (which also cover apartments and condos) in B.C. and Ontario fell by 15.8 per cent, reported Reuters.
 
Vancouver, in particular, saw a drastic 25.2 per cent slide in plans for multi-family units. The decrease came before the announcement and implementation of a new 15 per cent tax on foreign buyers of B.C. homes.
 
Non-residential permits were also down by 6.2 per cent nationwide, with industrial buildings declining by 8.7 per cent and institutional buildings falling by 20.6 per cent due to less hospital construction.

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