Statistics Canada: Investment in Building Construction, May 2025

The total value of investment in building construction decreased by $491.4 million to $21.8 billion in May. Investment in the residential sector fell 3.0%, while the non-residential sector edged down 0.4%.

On a constant dollar basis (2023=100), the total value of investment in building construction in May was down 2.3% from the previous month and was up 3.1% on a year-over-year basis.

Multi-unit component leads residential construction decline

Investment in residential building construction declined by $462.6 million to $15.0 billion in May. Losses were recorded in the construction of both multi-unit dwellings (-3.4%) and single-family homes (-2.5%).

In May, investment in multi-unit construction dropped by $295.2 million to $8.5 billion. The monthly decline was largely attributed to Ontario (-$166.4 million) and Quebec (-$159.0 million). Meanwhile, Alberta (+$50.4 million) saw notable gains, followed by Saskatchewan (+$20.2 million).

Single-family home investment decreased by $167.4 million to $6.6 billion in May. Ontario (-$80.4 million) accounted for nearly half of the decrease, followed by six other provinces and three territories.

Non-residential investment declines slightly

The value of non-residential investment in building construction edged down by $28.8 million to $6.8 billion in May. Declines in the industrial (-1.3%) and commercial (-0.5%) components were mitigated by a gain in the institutional component (+0.2%).

Investment in the industrial component decreased by $18.0 million to $1.4 billion in May. The fall was largely due to declines in Quebec (-$10.9 million) and Ontario (-$7.1 million). Nova Scotia (+$2.3 million) led the increases recorded in five provinces and one territory.

Investment in the commercial component declined by $15.9 million to $3.3 billion in May. Decreases were recorded in eight provinces and two territories, led by Ontario (-$8.8 million).

Meanwhile, investment in the institutional component edged up by $5.1 million to $2.1 billion in May. Gains in Alberta (+$8.5 million) and six other provinces were partially offset by a decline in Quebec (-$13.9 million).

For more information on construction, please visit the Construction statistics portal.

For more information on housing, please visit the Housing statistics portal.

Note to readers

Table 34-10-0286 has been archived on the Statistics Canada website and will no longer be updated but may still be viewed. The successor table is 34-10-0293, and the information from January 2017 onwards that was in table 34-10-0286 is still available in the new table, except for the constant dollar series, which has been rebased to 2017=100. Constant dollar data for January and February 2017 represent an average between the old base year (2012=100) and the new base year (2023=100) and should be used with caution. The 2017 data series will be backcasted and the figures will be revised with the release of our annual revision.

Data are subject to revisions based on late responses, delayed construction start dates for large projects, methodological changes, classification updates, price index updates for constant dollar series, benchmarking and adjustments to ad hoc macroeconomic events. Unadjusted data have been revised back to January 2023. Seasonally adjusted data have been revised back to January 2017.

Data presented in this release are seasonally adjusted with current dollar values unless otherwise stated. Using seasonally adjusted data allows month-to-month and quarter-to-quarter comparisons by removing the effects of seasonal variations. For information on seasonal adjustment, see Seasonally adjusted data—Frequently asked questions.

Monthly estimates for constant dollars are calculated using quarterly deflators from the Building Construction Price Index (18-10-0276-01). The monthly indexes used for the deflation process were part of a methodology review to increase the quality of the constant dollar and seasonally adjusted series. The indexes previously displayed a step pattern because of less frequent collection.

Detailed data on investment activity by type of building and type of work are now available in the unadjusted current dollar series.

The trade and services subcomponent includes buildings such as retail and wholesale outlets, retail complexes and motor vehicle show rooms. More detailed information can be found on the Integrated Metadatabase at Types of Building Structure – 2.2.1 – Trade and services.

Next release

Data on investment in building construction for June will be released on August 19.

Source: Statistics Canada