Sask Building Permit Values Jump

Farmers are not the only ones who have been dealing with a drought in the past year or two. Those in the construction industry have been experiencing their own dry patch but….there are signs that the economic forecast is changing.

The value of building permits being issued by municipalities nationwide paused a bit in April in most regions. Saskatchewan, though, was an exception as builders – whether in the residential or commercial and industrial fields – were bidding on a growing volume of work.

The value of building permits in the month jumped almost 40% compared to the same time a year – the height of the downturn – with all but the institutional sector showing increased signs of activity.

Residential building intentions were up about 30-percent compared to April a year ago.

The total value of permits for non-residential – which includes commercial such as offices or retail, along with industrial development and institutional activity which is government work – was twice as high as a year earlier with the commercial sector accounting for the majority of that jump.