Cheaper end of housing market drives building intentions in April.
June 7, 2004 - A surge in demand for more affordable types of housing such as condominiums and rowhouses pushed the value of building permits to new record levels in April, Statistics Canada reported on Monday.
The federal agency reported that $119.95 million worth of building permits were taken out in Ottawa in April, up 2.4 per cent from March.
On the year to date, the total value of building permits is down, by 7.6 per cent, to $539.45 million, thanks largely to declines in the non-residential construction sector.
The strength in the local construction industry remains in housing, with more affordable multiple-type units leading the way. Statscan reported that $97.92 million worth of residential building permits were taken out in Ottawa in April, up by 11.4 per cent from March as builders ramp up for the summer construction season. Permits for single-family homes were up by 8.2 per cent, while permits for more affordable housing types such as condos, apartments and rowhousing were up by 16 per cent.
On the year to date, demand for singles is actually down, by 2.4 per cent. Builders see greater demand for multiples and the value of permits for multiple housing types are up by 17.3 per cent on the year to date. Total residential permits are up by 6.1 per cent from the year before, to $369.48 million.
In the non-residential market, permits were down from both March and the year before. In April, $22.03 million of non-residential permits were taken out by builders, down by 24.6 per cent from March. On the year to date, non-res permits are down by 27.8 per cent, to $169.96 million.
'PERSISTENT HOUSING FEVER'
Looking at the country as a whole, Statscan said the trend was much the same, as the housing boom shows few signs of easing.
"These results clearly point to a persistent housing fever in the country," Statscan said in its Daily Bulletin.
"Among the contributing factors are advantageous mortgage rates, a strong level of job creation since August 2003, a rise in disposable income and a positive consumer confidence."
About $3.12 billion worth of residential permits were issued across the country in April, up by 4.9 per cent from an already record level in March. Those new permits were for 21,625 new dwellings, the highest monthly tally since January 1990.
Permits for multiple-type units jumped by 15.5 per cent in April, to $1.1 billion, the first time the monthly total for this sector of the market has passed $1 billion. The multiples total was also 13.4-per-cent higher than the previous record set in January.
Driving the increase was a number of big apartment and condominium projects in the Toronto area.
The more expensive singles market, on the other hand, held steady at about $2 billion, still "a very high level", Statscan said.
The total value of residential and non-residential permits issued across the country jumped by 6.3 per cent from March to $4.5 billion, the highest level since July 2003.
In the non-residential sector, the value of permits shot up by 39.7 per cent in April from March, but was still weaker than last year's average.
© Copyright 2003 The Ottawa Business Journal