How much office construction is happening, city by city.
Statistics Canada estimates $11.50B of work was put in place on Canadian office buildings in the 12 months to July 2026. 66% of it was renovation of existing buildings, not new construction.
Canada, by year
Office construction put in place, calendar years with every month published.
Renovation was the majority of the work in 8 of 9 years; the exception was 2021 at 46%. Its share ranged from 46% in 2021 to 65% in 2025. Most office construction here happens inside buildings that already stand, which is why fit-out trades set the pace of this market.
By metropolitan area
12 months to July 2026, ranked by office construction put in place. Select a city with a full page for its history.
| Area | Office construction put in place | Against prior 12 months | Renovation share | Office permits | Office permit value | Homes from conversions |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Toronto | $3.77B | +12.8% | 70% | 939 | $2.36B | 94 |
| Vancouver | $1.51B | -0.7% | 59% | 380 | $564.2M | 82 |
| Montréal | $1.08B | -2.8% | 84% | 377 | $624.1M | 955 |
| Calgary | $618.5M | -5.6% | 81% | 202 | $182.5M | 1,369 |
| Edmonton | $489.7M | -1.9% | 72% | 168 | $209.9M | 41 |
| Ottawa-Gatineau (Ontario part) | $410.3M | +8.6% | 84% | 147 | $355.2M | 133 |
| Winnipeg | $269.6M | +12.6% | 66% | 115 | $156.7M | 183 |
| Quebec City | $208.0M | +13.5% | 38% | 63 | $151.2M | 248 |
| Oshawa | $197.4M | -7.0% | 44% | 17 | $15.9M | 29 |
| Ottawa-Gatineau (Quebec part) | $152.2M | +22.5% | 89% | 27 | $28.3M | 4 |
| Hamilton | $139.6M | +15.3% | 47% | 50 | $36.6M | 38 |
| Moncton | $129.8M | +58.0% | 16% | 22 | $28.3M | 4 |
| Saskatoon | $120.1M | +13.6% | 80% | 44 | $63.4M | 0 |
| Kitchener-Cambridge-Waterloo | $106.3M | +2.8% | 98% | 39 | $44.2M | 136 |
| London | $96.5M | +13.6% | 80% | 42 | $51.3M | 54 |
| Halifax | $89.5M | +24.1% | 70% | 62 | $99.1M | 130 |
| Regina | $84.3M | +45.3% | 70% | 37 | $64.5M | 2 |
| Victoria | $69.6M | -55.2% | 41% | 22 | $17.2M | 7 |
| Windsor | $61.4M | -19.1% | 93% | 19 | $18.9M | 4 |
| Barrie | $58.5M | +91.1% | 24% | 16 | $47.1M | 0 |
| St. Catharines-Niagara | $53.6M | +64.8% | 45% | 28 | $37.6M | 88 |
| Kelowna | $46.4M | -46.5% | 79% | 18 | $12.5M | 1 |
| Saguenay | $37.5M | +16.9% | 55% | 13 | $23.1M | 1 |
| Greater Sudbury | $35.3M | +99.1% | 97% | 12 | $20.3M | 87 |
| Sherbrooke | $34.7M | +87.8% | 74% | 16 | $13.7M | 17 |
| Fredericton | $33.3M | +120.5% | 94% | 10 | $34.0M | 0 |
| Kamloops | $30.8M | +175.5% | 83% | 5 | $12.1M | 0 |
| St. John's | $30.2M | -22.7% | 83% | 12 | $9.8M | 0 |
| Trois-Rivières | $27.1M | -16.5% | 29% | 17 | $18.1M | 45 |
| Guelph | $25.7M | -66.7% | 39% | 10 | $4.9M | 36 |
| Brantford | $25.2M | +106.5% | 41% | 9 | $11.5M | 44 |
| Lethbridge | $25.1M | +26.3% | 38% | 16 | $13.5M | 0 |
| Drummondville | $24.5M | -27.2% | 62% | 14 | $14.1M | 19 |
| Thunder Bay | $24.4M | -6.5% | 26% | 9 | $17.6M | 85 |
| Belleville - Quinte West | $21.5M | +145.1% | 41% | 7 | $12.6M | 3 |
| Kingston | $20.0M | +21.9% | 68% | 13 | $5.1M | 79 |
| Chilliwack | $13.4M | -1.4% | 80% | 9 | $13.2M | 0 |
| Abbotsford-Mission | $13.2M | -65.2% | 68% | 6 | $4.2M | 6 |
| Peterborough | $12.9M | -39.0% | 70% | 5 | $6.2M | 1 |
| Saint John | $12.9M | -23.4% | 59% | 11 | $12.4M | 36 |
| Nanaimo | $10.6M | -5.8% | 86% | 4 | $4.2M | 5 |
| Red Deer | $8.6M | -12.1% | 98% | 11 | $5.4M | 0 |
Where non-residential buildings are becoming homes
Homes created by permits converting non-residential buildings to residential use, 12 months to July 2026. Every non-residential type is counted, not only offices.
| Area | Homes created | Permits | Permit value | Homes, previous 12 months |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Calgary | 1,369 | 10 | $275.1M | 508 |
| Montréal | 955 | 88 | $85.6M | 519 |
| Quebec City | 248 | 10 | $60.1M | 209 |
| Winnipeg | 183 | 4 | $28.1M | 71 |
| Kitchener-Cambridge-Waterloo | 136 | 5 | $40.2M | 143 |
| Ottawa-Gatineau (Ontario part) | 133 | 12 | $19.9M | 338 |
| Halifax | 130 | 7 | $18.7M | 21 |
| Toronto | 94 | 14 | $10.3M | 26 |
| St. Catharines-Niagara | 88 | 4 | $9.7M | 41 |
| Greater Sudbury | 87 | 3 | $17.9M | 35 |
| Thunder Bay | 85 | 2 | $14.1M | 3 |
| Vancouver | 82 | 8 | $17.3M | 11 |
Calgary accounts for 29% of the 4,795 homes created by conversion permits nationally in the period.
By province
12 months to July 2026.
| Area | Office construction put in place | Against prior 12 months | Renovation share | Office permits | Office permit value | Homes from conversions |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ontario | $5.34B | +12.0% | 67% | 1,470 | $3.19B | 1,164 |
| British Columbia | $1.87B | -5.4% | 58% | 504 | $756.3M | 124 |
| Quebec | $1.84B | +3.9% | 73% | 647 | $1.04B | 1,373 |
| Alberta | $1.30B | -3.4% | 70% | 476 | $497.1M | 1,512 |
| Manitoba | $331.0M | +15.8% | 60% | 150 | $210.8M | 194 |
| Saskatchewan | $245.2M | +18.0% | 73% | 95 | $138.2M | 8 |
| New Brunswick | $192.0M | +51.9% | 33% | 59 | $100.1M | 162 |
| Nova Scotia | $136.2M | +30.2% | 66% | 84 | $115.5M | 241 |
| Yukon | $118.3M | +76.4% | 11% | 13 | $34.0M | 0 |
| Newfoundland and Labrador | $49.9M | -4.2% | 58% | 16 | $12.7M | 15 |
| Nunavut | $31.6M | +112.4% | 31% | 6 | $25.9M | 0 |
| Prince Edward Island | $29.6M | -52.3% | 62% | 12 | $11.0M | 2 |
| Northwest Territories | $16.6M | +678.1% | 39% | 5 | $14.6M | 0 |
Questions
What these figures can and cannot tell you.
What is the difference between permits and investment?
A building permit records work being authorised, valued by the applicant when the permit is issued. Investment is Statistics Canada’s estimate of the value of work actually put in place each month, spread over the time a project takes to build. Permits lead; investment follows. A large permit can appear in one month and its investment over the following year or two.
Why is most of it renovation?
Because most office construction happens inside buildings that already exist: tenant fit-outs, upgrades to mechanical and electrical systems, and repositioning of older space. Nationally 66% of the office construction put in place in the 12 months to July 2026 was renovation. For anyone negotiating a tenant improvement allowance, that is the part of the market competing for the same trades.
Does the conversion figure count office-to-residential conversions?
It counts them, but not only them. Statistics Canada publishes permits that convert any non-residential building to residential use, and it does not separate office buildings from churches, warehouses, schools or stores. It is the closest public measure of non-residential space leaving the stock, and it is labelled that way everywhere it appears.
Are the values adjusted for inflation?
No. They are current dollars. Construction prices have risen substantially since 2018, so part of any increase in dollar value is price rather than volume. The office construction price index measures that price change for each market.
Does this measure vacancy or absorption?
No. It measures the dollar value of construction work. It cannot say how much floor area was added or removed, or how much space is leased. New construction and conversions bound how the stock is changing; they are not a vacancy rate.
How current is it?
Both tables are monthly. This build carries investment to July 2026 and permits to July 2026. Statistics Canada revises recent months, so the latest figures can change on the next release.
Sources: Statistics Canada, table 34-10-0293-01, Investment in Building Construction, released 2026-09-21; and table 34-10-0292-01, Building permits, by type of structure and type of work, released 2026-09-16. Unadjusted, current dollars. Statistics Canada Open Licence.
Boundary: These are dollar values of construction activity in current dollars, not floor area, vacancy or absorption. A permit value is the applicant’s estimate of the work authorised; investment is Statistics Canada’s estimate of work put in place. Conversions to residential cover every non-residential building type, not office buildings alone. Values are not adjusted for construction price change.