Permits up and which brokers will benefit?

Brokers in some surprising markets can expect a business boom in the near future, with $8 billion worth of building permits were issued in June; up 13.5 per cent from May.

Brokers in some surprising markets can expect a business boom in the near future, with $8 billion worth of building permits were issued in June; up 13.5 per cent from May.

“Municipalities issued $2.4 billion worth of building permits for single-family dwellings in June, up 5.5 per cent from May,” according to a recent Statistics Canada report. “It was the third consecutive monthly advance.”

Increases to permits issued for single-family dwelling were up in six provinces; led by Alberta and followed by Ontario Quebec and British Columbia.
However, construction intentions for multi-family units dropped in the month of June.

“Construction intentions for multi-family units fell six per cent to $1.7 billion in June,” the report reads. “This decline came in the wake of three straight monthly increases and was mainly due to lower construction intentions in Western Canada.”

Quebec saw the largest gains across all sectors, with developments to increase construction for industrial building, institutional buildings and multi-family dwellings taking shape.

“The largest decreases were reported in Winnipeg, followed by Toronto and Vancouver,” the report states. The declines in Winnipeg and Toronto resulted from lower construction intentions for commercial buildings.

“In Vancouver, the decrease was largely attributable to lower construction intentions for multi-family dwellings.”