June Canadian investment in new housing construction rose 7.2 percent from June 2016 to C$4.7 billion (US$3.8 billion). The increase was mostly attributable to higher investment in single family dwellings which increased C$257.9 million (US$205.6 million).
Nationally, all but one province saw an increase in new housing investment in June. The largest increase was in Quebec with C$82.6 million (US$65.9 million), followed by Alberta with C$72.5 million (US$57.8 million) and British Columbia with C$57.4 million (US$45.8 million). Newfoundland and Labrador posted a decrease of C$7.4 million (US$5.9 million) (-26.2 percent) compared to June 2016.
Quebec's C$82.6 million (US$65.9 million) year-over-year increase was mostly a result of investments in apartments, accounting for 53 percent of the total gain in this province.
Alberta posted an increase of C$96.3 million (US$76.8 million) of investment in single homes compared to June 2016, offsetting the decrease of C$32.3 million (US$25.8 million) of investment in apartments.
In British Columbia, investment in new housing construction surpassed the C$1 billion (US$0.8 billion) mark for the second month in 2017, up 6 percent year over year. This increase was the result of higher investment in all dwelling types, except for double homes.
Prince Edward Island had the largest year-over-year percentage increase in new housing investment, up C$6.4 million (US$5.1 million). The growth was mostly attributed to a 127.5 percent increase of investment in single homes. The province also saw a year-over-year decrease of 24.7 percent in apartments compared to June 2016.
Quebec and Manitoba were the only two provinces posting increases among all dwelling types.
In Canada, new housing investment increased year over year for all dwelling types except apartments, which posted a decline of C$12.3 million (US$9.8 million) (-0.8 percent), mostly explained by lower investment in Ontario and Alberta.
