Investment in Canadian building construction topped $181B in 2019, a yearly jump of 3.4%, according to Statistics Canada.
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Overall, investment increased in six provinces, with substantial gains in Quebec (+10.7% to $38.6B), British Columbia (+10.3% to $32.6B) and Ontario (+1.8% to $71.7B).
StatsCan wrote in the annual review that "a rising population contributed to a significant increase in the residential sector," resulting in growth in both multi-unit investment (+162.7% to $199.3M) and single-unit investment (+34.8% to $475M).
This likely comes as no surprise in Toronto where, according to a recent CBRE market report, 2019 investment volumes topped $17.6B in 2019, making it "the nation's most active investment market in 2019."
Nationally, investment in residential construction increased 2.3% to $123.9B, while multi-unit investment continued to grow, up 11.8% to $62.6B. On the minus side, single-unit investment declined for back-to-back years, down 5.9% to $61.3B.
Increases in Ontario, British Columbia and Quebec led investment in multi-unit to surpass single-unit construction for the first time on an annual basis. Double digit increases in apartments and row homes, coupled with decreased investment in single homes "broadly reflected a national shift toward the intensification of urban areas," Statistics Canada wrote.
In the nonresident sector, investment increased in seven provinces, up 6% to $57.9B. Growth in commercial investment and industrial investment more than offset declines in the institutional component.
In Toronto, a recent Avison Young industrial report found 33 industrial buildings (6M SF) completed in the GTA in 2019, with another 14.7M SF under construction (up from 8.5M last year).
Investment in office buildings had the strongest growth, up 16.3% to $11.6B, while schools and education buildings reported the largest decrease, down 15.5% to $6.3B in 2019.
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