Building Permits

Halifax Building Permits

Nova Scotia · Statistics Canada Table 34-10-0066-01 · 5/2026

By OpenStats · Built from official Canadian sources

Direct municipal data

Construction value this period

$157.7MCADAbove average

225 building permits issued

$0$239.2M+Prov. avg$127.6MNational avg$213.6M
Permits issued
225
-22.1% vs same month prior year
Total permit value
$157.7M
$157,691,000
Avg permit value
$701K
Nova Scotia avg: $492K

Reading this page

Halifax issued 225 building permits in 5/2026, representing $157,691,000 in total construction value. The average permit was valued at $700,849, and 472 new housing starts were recorded in the period.

Residential work accounted for $71,923,000 (46%) of permit value, versus $85,768,000 (54%) non-residential. 472 residential units were included across this period's permits.

How to read this

Figures come from Statistics Canada's Monthly Survey of Building Permits (SDDS 2802), Table 34-10-0292-01: construction intentions at authorization. They are not CMHC starts or completions, and not dollars actually spent. Releases typically land about six weeks after the reference month; prior months revise.

Read year-over-year permit value beside residential units and the residential share. Value tracks capital intentions and can rise with construction costs even when unit counts are flat. Units are the cleaner signal for housing supply. Prefer multi-month or calendar-year totals; one large project can dominate a single month. Direct means a municipal or CMA breakout; regional means the enclosing metro may misstate this city alone.

Pair this page with CMHC starts when you care about homes actually underway, and with local permit portals when you need faster street-level detail. Method detail: methodology.

YoY permit value
-39.8%
-39.8% vs same month prior year
Residential units
472
New housing starts
472
Residential share
46%
Non-residential: 54%

Provincial & national comparison

Halifax vs Nova Scotia average (101 cities) and national average (4502 cities) for 5/2026.

Halifax total value158M
Nova Scotia average128M
National average214M
Permits issued225
Avg value per permit ($K)701K

Figure 1 · Value composition

Residential vs non-residential permit value

Halifax recorded $71,923,000 in residential construction (45.6%) and $85,768,000 in non-residential work (54.4%) during 5/2026.

Market summary

  • 45.6% of permit value is residential ($71,923,000)
  • 54.4% is non-residential ($85,768,000)
  • 472 new housing starts recorded in 5/2026
  • Provincial average: 259 permits and $127.6M per city

Value breakdown

CategoryValueShare
Residential value$71,923,00045.6%
Non-residential value$85,768,00054.4%
Total permits225
Avg value per permit$700,849vs $492K prov.

Contractors & suppliers

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Source · 34-10-0292-01. Last updated 2026-07-18. Refreshed on the site's automated schedule.