The value of construction intentions increased in both the commercial and institutional components. Despite July's drop, the value of non-residential permits has been on an upward trend since the end of 2005.

In the residential sector, the value of permits totalled $3.4 billion, up 4.6% from June as the demand for new housing increased for both single- and multi-family dwellings.

A new record high in the value of housing permits in Alberta inflated the national figure. If Alberta had been excluded from the total, the value of housing permits would have remained virtually unchanged in July.

The value of residential permits, while slightly lower than the peaks reached in December 2005 and in the first quarter of 2006, remained significantly high from an historical standpoint.

Among the metropolitan areas, Calgary, Edmonton and Vancouver showed the largest advances (in dollars) for the first seven months of 2006 compared with the same period last year. The strong demand for new housing in these three centres was largely behind the gains.

Overall, 22 out of the 28 metropolitan areas showed advances on a year-to-date basis. All metropolitan areas West of Ontario posted double-digit growth.

Both single- and multi-family permits pulled up the residential sector
Builders took out $2.2 billion worth of single-family permits, up 2.7% from June and the highest level since January when the value totalled $2.4 billion.

The value of multi-family permits rebounded 8.5% to $1.1 billion, cancelling out an 8.5% decline in June.

The housing sector continued to be sustained by the strong economy in Western Canada as well as by the high level of employment and solid consumer confidence.

The value of housing permits in Alberta totalled $753 million in July, surpassing the previous record of $744 million set last February. The gain came from increases in both single- and multi-family components. This was also the case in Quebec and Ontario, where sizeable advances were also recorded in July.

In contrast, the largest decline (in dollars) occurred in British Columbia (-9.6% to $579 million), a third decline over the last four months. A marked decline also occurred in Nova Scotia (-33.1%) where the value of residential permits hit their lowest level since January 2005.

Since the beginning of the year, municipalities have authorized 134,840 new dwelling units, a slight 0.4% gain from the January-to-July period in 2005.

Among the approvals, 52.3% were single-family units, a slightly higher share than the proportion of 50.9% for the entire year of 2005.

Second straight monthly decline in non-residential sector

A major decrease in proposed industrial projects propelled the non-residential sector to its second consecutive monthly decline. However, July's level of $1.9 billion was 2.4% higher than last year's monthly average.

Following June's tremendous increase, the value of permits for industrial buildings reached $337 million in July, down 48.7% from June.

This decline came after a very high level of construction intentions in June for projects in the utility and manufacturing building categories in Alberta. All provinces showed losses, except Manitoba and Newfoundland and Labrador.

Despite the decline, the value of industrial permits has been on an upward trend since January 2006.

After a 24.6% decrease in June, the value of permits for the institutional sector advanced 8.2% to $454 million. Higher construction intentions in the educational and medical categories contributed to this gain.

Since October 2005, the value of institutional permits has been on a declining trend. Saskatchewan showed the strongest increase in this component as the level ($57 million) reached its highest level since August 1989. In contrast, Ontario recorded the largest drop (-33.5% to $130 million). It was the lowest level since July 2000.

In the commercial component, permits increased 1.2% following a 12.1% drop in June. The increase mainly came from a gain in the intentions for buildings in the trade and services category, and from projects for warehouses.

The value of commercial permits has been on an upward trend since October 2005.

Several economic indicators are consistent with the upward trend in the non-residential sector. In the second quarter, corporate operating profits were just short of the historic high reported in the fourth quarter of 2005.

In addition, retail spending continued to grow at a fast rate and commercial and office vacancy rates declined in several centers.

Among the provinces, Alberta recorded the greatest decrease in the non-residential sector, from $610 million to $356 million. However, this level remained 3.1% higher than last year's monthly average.

Of the 28 census metropolitan areas, 16 recorded monthly declines in the value of non-residential permits. The largest decline (in dollars) occurred in Calgary, while the largest gain was in Winnipeg.

Value of building permits, by census metropolitan area1
	June 2006r	July 2006p	June to July 2006	January to July 2005	January to July 2006	January–July 2005 to January–July 2006
	Seasonally adjusted
	$ millions		% change	$ millions		% change
St. John's	25.7	28.5	11.0	204.3	208.0	1.8
Halifax	70.9	43.9	-38.1	341.1	376.0	10.2
Saint John	10.4	14.1	35.9	86.3	96.8	12.2
Saguenay	27.3	14.8	-45.6	93.5	107.8	15.2
Québec	91.5	82.0	-10.5	702.2	673.6	-4.1
Sherbrooke	14.5	14.4	-1.2	150.8	171.1	13.4
Trois-Rivières	15.3	22.4	46.6	92.5	132.9	43.7
Montréal	489.1	499.6	2.1	3,413.3	3,433.7	0.6
Ottawa–Gatineau, Ontario/Quebec	165.1	167.7	1.6	1,234.6	1,281.8	3.8
Ottawa–Gatineau (Que. part)	37.5	56.6	50.9	240.2	288.3	20.0
Ottawa–Gatineau (Ont. part)	127.6	111.1	-12.9	994.5	993.5	-0.1
Kingston	45.6	16.5	-63.8	119.3	161.0	34.9
Oshawa	102.5	81.7	-20.3	491.2	545.9	11.1
Toronto	720.2	884.2	22.8	6,182.6	6,058.1	-2.0
Hamilton	60.3	63.5	5.3	619.9	486.0	-21.6
St. Catharines–Niagara	42.9	42.6	-0.8	311.1	290.9	-6.5
Kitchener	90.8	47.4	-47.8	577.0	591.3	2.5
London	83.3	54.6	-34.5	491.3	545.4	11.0
Windsor	33.5	16.1	-51.9	255.4	313.3	22.6
Greater Sudbury / Grand Sudbury	15.9	14.6	-8.2	109.6	109.7	0.0
Thunder Bay	9.0	6.0	-33.3	80.2	45.0	-43.9
Winnipeg	62.4	108.7	74.3	396.4	530.4	33.8
Regina	29.0	42.5	46.4	150.6	197.4	31.1
Saskatoon	37.2	40.3	8.3	211.1	265.6	25.8
Calgary	393.9	460.2	16.8	2,210.5	2,873.4	30.0
Edmonton	276.8	242.8	-12.3	1,539.9	1,832.9	19.0
Abbotsford	16.7	8.4	-49.8	193.6	235.2	21.5
Vancouver	601.2	437.8	-27.2	3,092.1	3,438.5	11.2
Victoria	53.2	108.4	104.0	399.5	462.6	15.8
r revised p preliminary 1. Go online to view the census subdivisions that comprise the census metropolitan areas. Note: Data may not add to totals as a result of rounding.

Note to readers

Unless otherwise stated, this release presents seasonally adjusted data, which ease comparisons by removing the effects of seasonal variations.

The Building Permits Survey covers 2,380 municipalities representing 95% of the population. It provides an early indication of building activity. The communities representing the other 5% of the population are very small, and their levels of building activity have little impact on the total.

The value of planned construction activities shown in this release excludes engineering projects (e.g., waterworks, sewers or culverts) and land.

For the purpose of this release, the census metropolitan area of Ottawa–Gatineau is divided into two areas: Ottawa–Gatineau (Quebec part) and Ottawa–Gatineau (Ontario part).

Residential construction investment totalled $20.8 billion in the second quarter, up 8.5% from the $19.2 billion invested in the second quarter of 2005. This substantial growth was due to increases in all three components of residential construction (new homes, renovations and acquisition costs).

Since the start of 2006, residential construction investment has totalled $37.7 billion, up 9.2% compared with the same period of 2005.

Mortgage rates that remained relatively advantageous, high employment and a robust housing market in Western Canada are among the factors that stimulated housing demand. Rising prices for new homes also contributed to the increase in the level of residential construction investment.

Expenditures on new home construction totalled $10.4 billion in the second quarter, up 9.8% from the same quarter of 2005. The largest contribution to this growth (in dollars) came from increased spending on the construction of new single-family homes (+8.9% to $6.5 billion). Investment in new apartment/condominium construction also rose substantially (+14.3% to $2.3 billion).

Spending on renovations to existing dwellings totalled $8.6 billion in the second quarter, up 8.1% from the same quarter in 2005. Acquisition costs rose 3.4% to $1.8 billion.

At the provincial level, Alberta and British Columbia stood out sharply from the other provinces. Compared to the second quarter of 2005, investment expenditures in Alberta climbed 35.9% to more than $3.1 billion. This growth was driven by strong demand for new single-family housing (+46.3% to $1.6 billion). In British Columbia, the 22.5% increase was due to increased spending on new single-family housing but also to increased investment in apartments and condominiums.

Excluding Alberta and British Columbia from the national total, the increase in residential construction investment between the second quarters of 2005 and 2006 was only 1.5% instead of 8.5%.

The steepest decline occurred in Quebec, where investment fell 3.1%.

Note: Residential construction investment is divided into three main components. The first is new housing construction, which includes single dwellings, semi-detached dwellings, row housing and apartments, cottages, mobile homes and additional housing units created from non-residential buildings or other types of residential structures (conversions).

The second component of residential construction investment (renovations) includes alterations and improvements in existing dwellings. The third component is acquisition costs, which refers to the value of services relating to the sale of new dwellings. These costs include sales tax, land development and service charges, as well as record-processing fees for mortgage insurance and the associated premiums.

Residential construction investment
	Second quarter 2005	Second quarter 2006	Second quarter 2005 to second quarter 2006
	$ millions		% change
Canada	19,155.6	20,784.1	8.5
Newfoundland and Labrador	297.7	294.9	-1.0
Prince Edward Island	56.0	55.4	-1.1
Nova Scotia	440.2	464.3	5.5
New Brunswick	346.3	373.9	8.0
Quebec	5,193.9	5,033.7	-3.1
Ontario	7,097.8	7,365.1	3.8
Manitoba	411.1	455.1	10.7
Saskatchewan	330.0	353.6	7.1
Alberta	2,291.6	3,115.3	35.9
British Columbia	2,632.3	3,225.7	22.5
Yukon	28.8	27.6	-4.3
Northwest Territories	25.4	13.7	-46.2
Nunavut	4.4	5.9	34.9
Note: Data may not add to totals due to rounding.

-- Groups charge government with failing to consider impact on affordable housing; duties will increase volatility in the U.S. lumber market

-- U.S. Government failed to live up to its NAFTA and WTO international treaty agreements when it lost its cases defending illegally imposed duties

-- Consumers urge Administration to reverse proposal to hand out half-billion in illegally collected duties to a small portion of U.S. lumber producers

-- Legality questioned in Bush Administration creating a discretionary half-billion fund for unnamed programs without any Congressional oversight

WASHINGTON -- On August 28, 2006 Consumer groups in the U.S. said that they are hopeful that the Canadian Parliament will still force significant changes in the proposed agreement on softwood lumber imports from Canada. Specifically, American Consumers for Affordable Homes (ACAH), representing more than 95 percent of U.S. lumber consumption, expressed concerns over the volatility that will be caused by the proposed new duty system that amounts to price fixing. It would make higher than the free market if prices are low, putting an unnecessary tax burden on consumers. Today, lumber prices are at $297 per thousand board feet, which would trigger duties of 15%. This is especially troublesome at this time when the U.S. is witnessing a dramatic decline in housing starts.

"We are extremely concerned that the U.S. government wants to force volatility into the domestic housing market as it is facing a downturn by proposing the unwise schemes in this bad deal with Canada," said Susan Petniunas, spokesperson for ACAH.

Petniunas added that ACAH is shocked at the creative accounting system the Administration has designed to force Canadian companies to pay a billion dollars of duties collected since 2001 back into two funds a half-billion dollars each in duties collected since 2001. Half would be paid out to a small portion of the U.S. industry, giving them the ability to buy up smaller competitors or force them out of business. She said that this action also will add to the instability of the domestic market.

The other half-billion dollars will go to a discretionary fund that the Administration can use as it sees fit for what it calls "meritorious programs". The funds apparently will be off-budget and not have any Congressional oversight, and doled out any way the Bush Administration wants. "If there is any legal basis for this creative way to circumvent the U.S. Treasury -- which we do not believe there is -- and the two governments want to force Canadian firms to contribute a percentage of the illegally collected duties into these two funds, we would urge the government to spent the entire billion dollars on affordable housing, specifically focused on rebuilding the Gulf Coast," Petniunas said.

She pointed out that even within the past week the U.S. again lost one of its appeals on the procedure used to calculate dumping duties in the WTO, and that the Administration had failed to succeed in its cases against Canada in both the WTO and NAFTA. Canada has proven that it does not subsidize its industry, that there is no threat to the U.S. industry from Canadian imports, and that there is no evidence of dumping, yet Canada is willing to sign a deal that can be interpreted as "guilty as charged" while the U.S. thumbs its nose at its treaty obligations.

Petniunas said, "No rational Canadian company will ever use the NAFTA dispute process again if Canada agrees in this deal that it has given up its right to get all illegally collected duties back."

Petniunas pointed out that, based on U.S. Census Bureau data, duties on lumber price as many as 300,000 families out of the housing market since that small amount prices them out of a mortgage. The duties also have impacted a wide range of other industries using Canadian softwood lumber, such as truss manufacturers, pallets, cabinets, furniture and box springs, manufactured housing, as well as lumber wholesalers and retailers.

Members of ACAH include: American Homeowners Grassroots Alliance, Catamount Pellet Fuel Corporation, CHEP International, C. J. Hodder Lumber Company, Consumers for World Trade, Free Trade Lumber Council, Furniture Retailers of America, The Home Depot, International Sleep Products Association, Manufactured Housing Association for Regulatory Reform, Manufactured Housing Institute, National Association of Home Builders, National Black Chamber of Commerce, National Lumber and Building Material Dealers Association, National Retail Federation, Retail Industry Leaders Association, and the United States Hispanic Contractors Association.

Apartment Building Construction Price Index1
(1997=100)
	Second quarter 2006	Second quarter 2005 to second quarter 2006	First to second quarter 2006
		% change
Composite index	139.9	7.0	2.9
Halifax	129.2	4.9	1.8
Montréal	134.3	3.9	1.2
Ottawa–Gatineau, Ontario part	141.6	5.2	1.9
Toronto	146.7	5.9	2.1
Calgary	148.1	10.8	5.3
Edmonton	144.4	10.0	5.0
Vancouver	140.1	10.3	4.8
1. Go online to view the census subdivisions that comprise the census metropolitan areas.

KITCHENER - The City of Kitchener has released the results of its 'Help Design Downtown' public consultation process which gave residents the opportunity to shape an exciting vision for the look and design of Kitchener's Downtown.

Over the course of the two month-long consultation, over 1,000 residents from across the city and region participated in the interactive consultation process. Through surveys, online forums, open houses and meetings with stakeholders such as the Board of the Kitchener Downtown Business Association (KDBA), citizens provided their input on everything from the height of downtown buildings to the number of trees and patios on downtown streets.

''The results of the consultation tell us that the community expects their municipal government to play a strong role in determining how our downtown looks - including its buildings, storefronts, and store signs. This includes helping ensure that new development is built attractively and with high quality materials,'' said Cory Bluhm, the City Planner who led the public consultation process.

Some of the key findings include:

* The type of downtown residents want to see the most is ?A Downtown that has lively street life - with great shopping, markets, outdoor events, restaurants, outdoor patios, etc.?

* The elements respondents think the City should invest in the most include more outdoor restaurant patios; more flower gardens and flower pots; more street trees; and nicer storefronts.

* 58 per cent of respondents feel new buildings should not be allowed to exceed 10 stories, while 36 per cent feel buildings should be allowed to exceed 10 stories.

* 87 per cent of respondents want people-friendly streets.

* When redesigning King Street, 59 per cent of respondents prefer to see sidewalk activity maximized.

* 58 per cent of respondents want the City to encourage good design, 38 per cent want the City to require good design, while 4 per cent want the City to continue with a 'hands off' approach.

''If we are going to be successful in re-energizing our downtown, we need to create a downtown that residents will visit, enjoy, and return to,'' noted the Executive Director of the KDBA, Marty Schreiter. ''The creation of new downtown design guidelines is one of the quickest and most concrete ways the City can make noticeable improvements to our downtown. By basing those new guidelines on what our citizens want, we are much more likely to achieve our goal of attracting more people to our core. This can be a win-win situation for citizens, the City, and local businesses.''

Public Input to Form the Basis of Future Downtown Planning:

The results of the public consultation will be used to inform future downtown initiatives such as new Municipal Plan policies, urban design guidelines, engineering project designs, and Economic Development projects.

As a first step in the development of a series of draft Municipal Plan policies which are based on the public's input on downtown design, City staff will be meeting with the Downtown Advisory Committee and the Board of the KDBA in the coming weeks to discuss the findings of the public consultations. Staff is also hoping to meet with the Downtown Neighbourhood Alliance in the near future.

On August 21 staff will present the City's Development and Technical Services (DTS) Committee with a series of draft Municipal Plan policies on downtown design which are based on the results of the extensive public consultation process. Once the draft policies have been presented to the DTS Committee, staff will provide the community with an opportunity to comment on them before City Council considers them for final approval at a later date.

Background on Survey Results:

49 per cent of the respondents were male and 51 per cent were female. Two-thirds of the respondents were between the ages of 19 and 44, and half of the respondents either live or work downtown.

The value of building permits slipped marginally in June, but the decline would have been much sharper without a burst of industrial projects in Alberta.

Municipalities issued permits worth $5.3 billion in June, down 1.4% from May, as the value of construction intentions in both the residential and non-residential sectors declined.

Even so, the value of permits surpassed the $5.0-billion mark for the seventh consecutive month, and it was 1.0% higher than the average monthly level recorded since the beginning of the year.

Without the exceptional results in Alberta, the picture would have been less rosy. Contractors took out a very high value of permits for industrial construction in Alberta.

If Alberta had been excluded from the national figure, the total value of permits would have declined 7.2%.

Nationally, the total value of residential permits declined 1.3% to $3.2 billion. A decline in the value of multi-family permits more than offset a gain in single-family. After peaking at the end of 2005, the value of residential permits has been on a soft declining trend.

Construction intentions in the non-residential component fell 1.4% to $2.1 billion. A strong gain in the industrial component was more than offset by declines in both the commercial and institutional components.

Intentions in the non-residential sector have been on a strong upward trend since the beginning of the year. Values in March, May and June this year were above the $2.0-billion mark.

The value of permits declined 1.0% in the second quarter compared with a quarter earlier. A 7.1% gain in the non-residential sector was more than offset by a 5.5% decline in the residential component.

Regionally, 23 out the 28 census metropolitan areas showed stronger results in the first half of 2006 in comparison with the same period last year. Calgary, Edmonton and Vancouver showed by far the strongest advances (in dollars) due mainly to their dynamic housing market.

Except for St. John's, all metropolitan areas showing retreats in their cumulative value of building permits were in Ontario. Toronto and Hamilton posted the largest declines.
Residential: First increase in five months for single-family permits

Construction intentions for single-family homes increased for the first time in five months in June.

Contractors took out $2.2 billion in single-family permits, up 2.4%. The value of multi-family permits fell 8.2% to $1.1 billion, following a 3.1% increase in May.

The demand for new housing appears to have eased, as the number of units approved declined 5.3% in the second quarter of 2006 in comparison with the first.

The second-quarter retreat came solely from the single-family component, where the number of approvals fell 10.5%. Among the more affordable multi-family units, approvals edged up 0.7%.

The progressive increase in the mortgage rates over the last year seems to have cooled the demand for new housing, especially for the more expensive single-family segment. However, the demand remained high from a historical standpoint, thanks to strong full-time employment and gains in disposable income.

Provincially, the largest retreat (in dollars) in June in the value of housing permits occurred in Ontario (-6.4%) and Quebec (-8.9%). These declines were partly offset by gains in Alberta and British Columbia.
Non-residential: Industrial permits highest in 17 years

Construction intentions in the industrial component hit their highest level in 17 years in June, thanks to a surge in the industrial permits in Alberta.

Municipalities issued $649 million in permits for industrial construction in June, the highest level since 1989. This represented a 69.2% increase from May and a third consecutive monthly gain.

The value of industrial permits was nearly as twice high as the average monthly level for 2005.

In Alberta, contractors took out $306 million worth of industrial permits, nearly half the national total, as a result of construction intentions for utility buildings and plants. This level was the highest on record since February 1988. All provinces posted gains, except for Newfoundland and Labrador and Quebec.

Commercial intentions fell 12.7% to $1.1 billion following a 12.0% gain in May. The decrease came from a decline in the intentions for buildings in the trade and services category, and from projects for hotels and restaurants.

Though highly volatile since the beginning of the year, the value of commercial permits has essentially been on an upward trend since the end of 2005.

The largest declines in the commercial category in June were posted in Ontario (-24.2%) and British Columbia (-21.6%).

In the institutional component, permits plunged 25.4% to $415 million, following a 35.7% gain in May. Declines in the value of permits for schools and in the medical and hospital category fuelled the decrease.

June's level was the second lowest during the last nine months. The largest declines occurred in British Columbia (-53.2%) and Saskatchewan (-76.3%).

The very dynamic economy in Western Canada, robust retail sales, strong corporate operating profits and near-record levels of industrial capacity use contributed to the recent healthy results in the non-residential sector.

Provincially, the largest advance (in dollars) in June in the value of non-residential permits occurred in Alberta, where municipalities authorized a record $613 million worth of non-residential permits, 24.4% higher than the old mark set in March 2006.

This big gain was offset by marked declines in Ontario (-13.9%) and British Columbia (-26.0%).

Home construction to date is running behind last year’s. For the first seven months of 2006, housing starts in the Kitchener CMA are down 21 per cent with both single-detached and multiple home starts below levels recorded last year.

“The bright spot in Kitchener’s new home market this year has been the more than three-fold increase in semi-detached home starts,” said Erica McLerie CMHC Market Analyst for the Kitchener CMA. While single-detached homes remain the first choice for new homebuyers, the lower prices of semi-detached homes make them a viable alternative, especially considering the escalating cost of new single-detached homes.”

Construction companies have not done enough to solve problems with training

CALGARY- In an open letter to Prime Minister Stephen Harper the week of July 17, the Canadian Construction Association (CCA) makes a series of recommendations it claims will address the problem of "labour shortages" in the construction industry. The Alberta Federation of Labour responded to the letter today, saying it is full of self-interested rhetoric and glosses over the industry's poor track record of developing Canada's domestic labour force.

"The CCA letter is nothing but self-interested, self-serving spin to loosen rules for temporary foreign workers," says AFL President Gil McGowan. "The construction industry is looking to the government to solve a problem they themselves created through years of neglect of the Canadian labour pool." CCA claims it has done all it can to encourage domestic workers to earn certification in the trades. This isn't so, says McGowan. The apprenticeship and training system in Canada is a mess, and construction employers are a central player in how it operates.

"In Alberta alone, there are 20,000 construction employers. Only 11,000 use apprentices. If 45% of construction companies won't hire a single apprentice, why should we let them import massive numbers of temporary workers?"

"According to official figures, less than one-half of Albertans who enter an apprenticeship program successfully complete the program and become certified. A 55% failure rate is an embarrassment," says McGowan.

McGowan points out that improving Alberta completion rates to 75% could add 4,000 new certified trades workers to the Alberta labour market each year. "That would go a long way to addressing the concerns about lack of workers. Multiply Alberta's 4000 with 9 other provinces, and there is a large pool of workers who want to be trades people, but failed to accomplish it for some reason."

"We should be exploring those solutions before making knee-jerk policy changes to a complex area such as immigration.

McGowan notes the AFL supports more permanent immigration to Canada, wanting reforms that will encourage people from around the world to settle in Canada. "But bringing in temporary workers, who are very vulnerable to abuse and exploitation is no solution."

"Immigration policy should be about building a stronger society, not importing cheap labour to serve the short-term needs of employers," McGowan concludes.

Prices advanced in 16 of the 21 metropolitan areas surveyed. Calgary continued to lead the way with a monthly increase of 5.4% followed closely by Edmonton (+5.3%). Charlottetown (+1.3%), Winnipeg (+1.1%) and Kitchener (+1.0%) also registered significant increases. High demand for new housing, higher material and labour costs and increased land values were cited as the main reasons for these increases. High fuel costs, which affected transportation costs, were also cited as a factor in Calgary and Edmonton. In Charlottetown, some builders reported higher marketing costs.

Other noteworthy gains were observed in St. Catharines–Niagara (+0.7%) and Ottawa–Gatineau (+0.6%) where good demand pushed prices up. Increased costs associated with moving into new phases were another factor in Ottawa–Gatineau. Monthly increases were also noted in St. John's, Halifax, Saint John, Fredericton and Moncton, Québec, Montréal, Toronto and Oshawa, Windsor, Regina and Vancouver. Of the 16 metropolitan areas showing increases, land prices rose in 12.

Two metropolitan areas registered no monthly change while London (-0.8%), Victoria (-0.3%) and Greater Sudbury / Grand Sudbury and Thunder Bay (-0.1%) posted decreases due to competitive pricing.

Compared to one year ago, Calgary (+41.3%) had the largest increase for new homes, followed by Edmonton (+24.4%), Winnipeg (+11.7%), Halifax (+6.8%), Regina and Saskatoon (+6.7% each).

New housing price indexes
(1997=100)
	May 2006	May 2005 to May 2006	April to May 2006
		% change
Canada total	140.0	9.1	1.3
House only	149.7	9.4	1.1
Land only	120.8	7.9	1.5
St.John's	128.3	2.4	0.5
Halifax	130.1	6.8	0.3
Charlottetown	116.9	2.8	1.3
Saint John, Fredericton and Moncton	112.8	4.0	0.3
Québec	142.0	6.1	0.5
Montréal	147.6	4.6	0.4
Ottawa–Gatineau	158.2	3.3	0.6
Toronto and Oshawa	136.7	4.0	0.3
Hamilton	140.2	3.9	0.0
St. Catharines–Niagara	143.6	4.6	0.7
Kitchener	137.2	5.1	1.0
London	131.1	3.1	-0.8
Windsor	104.9	-0.8	0.4
Greater Sudbury / Grand Sudbury and Thunder Bay	101.4	1.3	-0.1
Winnipeg	143.8	11.7	1.1
Regina	152.1	6.7	0.3
Saskatoon	134.6	6.7	0.0
Calgary	202.6	41.3	5.4
Edmonton	167.5	24.4	5.3
Vancouver	111.2	5.0	0.3
Victoria	117.9	6.2	-0.3
Note: View the census subdivisions that comprise the metropolitan areas online.

Investment in non-residential building construction hit a record high for the 13th consecutive quarter between April and June, thanks largely to huge gains in British Columbia and Alberta.

Investment in the three non-residential components combined (industrial, commercial and institutional) reached $8.7 billion, up 0.9% from the first quarter.

The biggest contributor was record spending in the two westernmost provinces. If Alberta and British Columbia were excluded from the national figure, the investment in non-residential construction would have declined 0.5% instead of rising 0.9%.


Nationally, investment reached a new record in two of the three components: commercial and institutional.

Second-quarter investment in commercial buildings rose 0.7% to $4.9 billion, while institutional investment increased 3.5% to $2.3 billion. Investment in the industrial component declined 2.7% to $1.4 billion.

Provincially, the largest contributions to the quarterly increase (in dollars) in the investment in non-residential construction came from Alberta (+8.8% to $1.6 billion) and British Columbia (+4.6% to $1.2 billion), the result of big gains in the commercial and institutional components.

Western Canada's dynamic economy continued to spark the non-residential sector. Other contributing factors were a strong labour market, which culminated in May's record surge in full-time jobs, and strong consumer demand for durable goods. In contrast, the picture in the rest of the country was less rosy, as shipments declined for a third month this year

Locally, 14 of the 28 census metropolitan areas recorded gains; the strongest was in Calgary where investment rose 12.7% to $606 million. In contrast, investment in Toronto fell sharply as a result of a marked decline in all three components.

Investment in non-residential building construction, by census metropolitan area
	Second quarter 2005	First quarter 2006	Second quarter 2006	First quarter to second quarter 2006
	Seasonally adjusted
	millions of dollars			% change
St. John's	57	65	55	-15.0
Halifax	117	118	137	16.4
Saint John	17	25	26	6.0
Saguenay	13	33	26	-22.6
Québec	151	174	161	-7.8
Sherbrooke	27	28	31	11.9
Trois-Rivières	24	34	30	-12.5
Montréal	731	701	659	-6.0
Ottawa–Gatineau, Ontario/Quebec	313	373	396	6.4
Ottawa–Gatineau (Que. part)	63	57	49	-13.6
Ottawa–Gatineau (Ont. part)	251	316	347	10.0
Kingston	41	31	23	-23.5
Oshawa	118	106	92	-13.4
Toronto	1,634	1,604	1,533	-4.4
Hamilton	134	154	162	5.1
St. Catharines–Niagara	73	57	64	11.0
Kitchener	170	130	123	-5.3
London	143	119	100	-16.1
Windsor	66	90	84	-7.5
Greater Sudbury / Grand Sudbury	33	28	24	-12.9
Thunder Bay	23	30	37	22.9
Winnipeg	155	206	207	0.9
Regina	60	76	74	-3.0
Saskatoon	55	87	97	11.4
Calgary	457	538	606	12.7
Edmonton	283	431	424	-1.5
Abbotsford	35	46	64	38.5
Vancouver	565	667	684	2.5
Victoria	65	74	81	9.9
Note: Go online to view the census subdivisions that comprise the census metropolitan areas.

Investment in office buildings at all-time high in Western Canada

Investment in commercial construction projects advanced for the 11th straight quarter as a result of robust activity in office building construction sites in Western Canada.

Provincially, the largest contributions to the quarterly increase (in dollars) in the commercial investment occurred in Alberta (+7.5% to $993 million) and in British Columbia (+3.8% to $704 million). Both were record high levels.

After hitting a record high in the first quarter, Ontario recorded the most significant decline in the wake of a slowdown in investment in office buildings, restaurants and warehouses construction.

A decline in vacancy rates and healthy economic growth in British Columbia and Alberta continued to fuel office building construction.

Institutional: New record level due to gains in the hospital category

Stronger investment in health care facilities accounted for the largest part of the 3.5% increase in institutional investment between April and June, a fifth consecutive increase.

The largest gains occurred in British Columbia and Alberta, where the investment rose 9.6% to $387 million and 10.8% to $331 million respectively. Ontario and Quebec, however, recorded the largest declines.

Investment was up in 19 census metropolitan areas. Ottawa led the growth for a second straight quarter (+21.7% to $159 million) as a result of investments in health care facilities.

The largest drop occurred in the Toronto area where investment in all institutional construction projects declined, except for religious buildings.

Slowdown in industrial investment

Investment in industrial construction fell 2.7%, halting eight consecutive quarters of steady gains. Investment fell in every category of industrial construction. Despite the decline, the $1.4 billion total was 10.9% higher than the average quarterly level recorded in 2005.

Investment in industrial construction declined in seven provinces and territories during the second quarter. The largest quarterly decrease (in dollars) occurred in Quebec (-8.7% to $499 million). In contrast, Alberta, Ontario and Prince Edward Island showed increases in industrial construction investment.

Overall, 11 census metropolitan areas recorded gains in investment. Calgary recorded the largest increase in industrial construction spending, which hit $56 million. Montréal posted the largest reduction.

In the second quarter, manufacturers continued to face increased production costs, stronger global competition and the appreciation of the Canadian dollar. Also, the industrial capacity utilization rate among Canadian industries edged down in the first three months of 2006.

Investment in non-residential building construction
	Second quarter 2005	First quarter 2006	Second quarter 2006	First quarter to second quarter 2006
	Seasonally adjusted
	millions of dollars			% change
Canada	7,763	8,601	8,674	0.9
Newfoundland and Labrador	82	85	79	-6.5
Prince Edward Island	29	38	37	-2.0
Nova Scotia	211	226	243	7.5
New Brunswick	141	171	176	3.3
Quebec	1,399	1,442	1,383	-4.1
Ontario	3,283	3,417	3,365	-1.5
Manitoba	251	278	277	-0.3
Saskatchewan	172	238	234	-1.7
Alberta	1,182	1,495	1,627	8.8
British Columbia	944	1,169	1,223	4.6
Yukon	15	16	17	7.9
Northwest Territories	34	22	12	-45.7
Nunavut	21	5	1	-82.8

Note to readers

Unless otherwise stated, this release presents seasonally adjusted data, which ease comparisons by removing the effects of seasonal variations.

Investments in non-residential building construction exclude engineering construction. This series is based on the Building Permits Survey of municipalities, which collects information on construction intentions.

Work put-in-place patterns are assigned to each type of structure (industrial, commercial and institutional). These work patterns are used to distribute the value of building permits according to project length. Work put-in-place patterns differ according to the value of the construction project; a project worth several million dollars will usually take longer to complete than will a project of a few hundred thousand dollars.

Additional data from the capital and repair expenditures surveys are used to create this investment series. Investment in non-residential building data are benchmarked to Statistics Canada's System of National Accounts of non-residential building investment series.

For the purpose of this release, the census metropolitan area of Ottawa–Gatineau is divided into two areas: Ottawa–Gatineau (Que. part) and Ottawa–Gatineau (Ont. part).

TORONTO - The Toronto Area real estate market began the summer season with a strong showing in June, Toronto Real Estate Board President Dorothy Mason announced July 6.

"The year continues to be very active," Mrs. Mason said. "June's 8,730 sales are within five per cent of last June's total of 9,153, which was part of a record year."

Mrs. Mason noted that although June was more balanced than previous months, 2006 remains about two per cent ahead of last year's pace. "Year-to-date figures show the record first quarter has been followed by solid, steady results in the late spring and early summer." According to Jason Mercer, Senior Market Analyst for the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, favourable economic conditions are helping to keep demand strong.

"Robust June sales are testament to the fact that demand for ownership housing remains strong in the Greater Toronto Area. Steady increases in employment and wages coupled with low borrowing costs have kept the number of home buyers near record levels," Mr. Mercer said.

Areas consisting primarily of detached homes were particularly active during June, compared to figures from a year ago.

Wilson Heights in North York saw 42 per cent more transactions than in June 2005.

In Scarborough, the Birchmount Park/Cliffside area of the waterfront had 38 per cent more homes change hands as compared to June 2005. North of Toronto, the northern part of Richmond Hill had a 17 per cent increase in overall transactions led by detached home sales. Meanwhile, a jump in activity of semidetached homes helped push the Junction/High Park area of Toronto 33 per cent higher than last June in terms of overall sales.

The market is still very healthy and there is a lot of choice for all types of homebuyers," Mrs. Mason added. "It's a very good time to be in the housing market."

May's level was the third highest on record, surpassed only by levels in December 2005 and in March 2006. It was also 6.3% higher than last year's monthly average.

Contractors took out $2.1 billion in permits for non-residential projects, up 18.1% following a 19.5% decline in April. The big gain was due to vigorous construction intentions in all three non-residential components (industrial, commercial and institutional).

The value of non-residential permits, which has increased in three of the last four months, has been on an upward trend since the end of 2005.

The value of housing permits edged up 0.7% to $3.3 billion, as a gain in intentions for multi-family dwellings more than offset a decline in the single-family component. The value of construction intentions in May was 0.9% higher than the monthly average in 2005, a record year.

Results in the housing sector have been strong and stable since the beginning of the year.

Regionally, 22 out of 28 census metropolitan areas showed stronger results in the first five months of 2006 compared with the same period in 2005. The largest advances (in dollars) occurred in Calgary, Edmonton and Vancouver where the strong housing market was the predominant factor. In contrast, Toronto and Hamilton showed the largest year-over-year declines.

Single-family dwellings a drag on housing intentions

Construction intentions for single-family dwellings reached $2.1 billion, down 1.0% from April and the fourth consecutive monthly retreat. In contrast, the value of multi-family permits increased 3.8% to $1.2 billion, the third monthly increase in the last four months.

Municipalities approved the construction of 18,915 new dwelling units in May, up 2.3% from April.

The number of single-family units approved declined 2.2% to 9,400 units, the lowest level since January 2005. The number of new single-family approvals has declined over the last five months.

The number of multi-family units authorized reached 9,515, up 7.0% from April. The demand for this type of dwelling has been on an upward trend since the beginning of 2006.

The housing sector continued to be boosted by advantageous mortgage rates, although they have increased progressively over the last year. The high level of full-time employment, combined with strong gains in disposable income, also had a positive impact on the demand for new housing.

Provincially, the largest gain in the housing sector (in dollars) occurred in Ontario and in Quebec. In Ontario, the 4.7% gain was mainly fuelled by single-family permits, while in Quebec, construction intentions for multi-family dwellings were behind the 5.5% gain.

The largest retreat (in dollars) in May came from Alberta (-10.8%), with declines in both the single- and multi-family components. Despite a third consecutive monthly decline in Alberta, the level remained 9.8% higher than last year's monthly average.

Non-residential sector: Strong advances in all three components

All three components (commercial, industrial and institutional) contributed to the 18.1% gain in non-residential construction intentions in May.

Construction intentions in the commercial sector remained strong, rising 9.6% to $1.2 billion, a third increase in the last four months. This was the second highest level since the record set in August 1989. Higher value of building permits for trade and services buildings in Ontario and strong construction intentions for the hotel and restaurant category in British Columbia were behind the gain.

Construction intentions for industrial projects rose 26.3% to $375 million, a second vigorous monthly increase. The gain was the result of large increases in the manufacturing and utility building categories. May's level was 12.6% higher than last year's monthly average.

After a 51.1% decline in April, the value of institutional permits rebounded 34.7% to $553 million, the second highest level in 2006. While every type of institutional buildings showed increases, growth was based mainly on strong intentions in the education and medical categories. May's level was 9.8% higher than last year's monthly average.

Western Canada's dynamic economy continued to spark the non-residential sector. Other contributing factors were a strong labour market, which culminated in May's record surge in full-time jobs, and strong consumer demand for durable goods. In contrast, the picture in the manufacturing sector was less rosy as shipments declined in April for a third month this year.

Provincially, the largest contributions to the monthly increase (in dollars) in the non-residential sector came from British Columbia (+61.7% to $378 million), Alberta (+31.5% to $411million) and Ontario (+6.5% to $813 million).

If Alberta and British Columbia were excluded, the overall increase in the non-residential sector would have been only 6.5% instead of 18.1%.

Newfoundland and Labrador, Prince Edward Island and New Brunswick were the only provinces to show a decline in the value of non-residential permits in May.

Of the 28 census metropolitan areas, 19 recorded monthly increases in the value of non-residential permits. The largest gains (in dollars) occurred in Calgary, Toronto and Vancouver. In contrast, the largest decrease was in Oshawa.

Value of building permits, by census metropolitan area1
	April 2006r	May 2006p	April to May 2006	January to May 2005	January to May 2006	January-May 2005 to January-May 2006
	Seasonally adjusted
	$ millions		% change	$ millions		% change
St. John's	42.4	24.8	-41.5	153.0	153.9	0.6
Halifax	43.0	68.0	58.3	227.8	261.1	14.6
Saint John	11.7	21.0	79.0	59.4	72.4	22.0
Saguenay	14.7	19.5	32.9	66.8	65.5	-2.0
Québec	108.9	83.4	-23.4	475.3	499.9	5.2
Sherbrooke	28.6	14.9	-47.8	94.4	142.2	50.6
Trois-Rivières	13.9	22.8	64.7	62.4	95.3	52.8
Montréal	475.0	506.1	6.5	2,304.6	2,443.6	6.0
Ottawa–Gatineau, Ontario/Quebec	106.1	143.7	35.4	875.7	949.4	8.4
Ottawa–Gatineau (Que. part)	28.1	39.4	40.4	155.3	193.9	24.9
Ottawa–Gatineau (Ont. part)	78.0	104.2	33.6	720.4	755.5	4.9
Kingston	15.9	20.7	30.3	73.9	99.1	34.0
Oshawa	83.5	46.4	-44.4	380.9	362.3	-4.9
Toronto	958.2	1,047.9	9.4	4,581.9	4,470.5	-2.4
Hamilton	56.3	55.3	-1.7	476.3	363.2	-23.8
St. Catharines–Niagara	44.8	55.7	24.2	233.4	205.1	-12.1
Kitchener	112.9	84.2	-25.5	378.4	454.0	20.0
London	78.7	92.6	17.7	348.3	408.5	17.3
Windsor	39.4	62.1	57.6	185.4	262.5	41.6
Greater Sudbury / Grand Sudbury	40.7	21.7	-46.7	65.0	79.2	21.9
Thunder Bay	3.7	5.9	60.0	65.3	30.6	-53.2
Winnipeg	75.8	67.6	-10.9	251.9	358.5	42.3
Regina	33.5	17.9	-46.6	114.7	124.8	8.8
Saskatoon	26.1	50.4	92.9	157.6	187.8	19.1
Calgary	357.6	346.8	-3.0	1,619.1	2,021.5	24.9
Edmonton	247.8	250.4	1.1	1,020.9	1,314.0	28.7
Abbotsford	40.5	27.8	-31.2	158.6	210.0	32.4
Vancouver	406.4	508.6	25.2	2,151.3	2,394.6	11.3
Victoria	62.6	56.6	-9.6	298.9	302.0	1.0
r revised p preliminary 1. Go online to view the census subdivisions that comprise the census metropolitan areas. Note: Data may not add to totals as a result of rounding.

Value of building permits, by sector, and by province and territory
	April 2006r	May 2006p	April to May 2006	January to May 2005	January to May 2006	January-May 2005 to January-May 2006
	Seasonally adjusted
	$ millions		% change	$ millions		% change
Canada	5,033.4	5,379.5	6.9	24,116.1	26,372.6	9.4
Residential	3,235.2	3,256.5	0.7	15,275.1	16,761.0	9.7
Non-residential	1,798.2	2,123.0	18.1	8,841.0	9,611.6	8.7
Newfoundland and Labrador	55.4	42.5	-23.3	211.8	214.6	1.3
Residential	32.2	26.1	-18.8	136.7	146.1	6.9
Non-residential	23.2	16.4	-29.4	75.2	68.5	-8.9
Prince Edward Island	22.2	14.9	-32.9	93.4	84.7	-9.3
Residential	9.9	7.9	-20.5	48.6	53.0	9.2
Non-residential	12.2	7.0	-42.9	44.9	31.7	-29.4
Nova Scotia	87.6	126.8	44.7	440.3	532.2	20.9
Residential	63.4	83.7	32.1	303.1	390.3	28.8
Non-residential	24.3	43.1	77.6	137.2	141.8	3.4
New Brunswick	76.5	74.6	-2.5	280.5	373.2	33.1
Residential	42.6	55.2	29.6	191.4	229.2	19.7
Non-residential	33.9	19.4	-42.8	89.1	144.0	61.7
Quebec	927.9	963.6	3.8	4,462.3	4,754.2	6.5
Residential	623.9	658.2	5.5	3,092.6	3,127.9	1.1
Non-residential	303.9	305.4	0.5	1,369.7	1,626.3	18.7
Ontario	1,897.1	2,000.2	5.4	9,724.6	9,694.7	-0.3
Residential	1,133.6	1,186.7	4.7	5,997.0	5,973.9	-0.4
Non-residential	763.5	813.5	6.5	3,727.6	3,720.9	-0.2
Manitoba	109.5	114.0	4.1	415.5	562.6	35.4
Residential	75.0	62.0	-17.4	251.2	341.2	35.8
Non-residential	34.4	52.1	51.1	164.2	221.4	34.8
Saskatchewan	89.5	100.6	12.4	361.9	428.8	18.5
Residential	34.6	35.4	2.1	161.0	182.2	13.2