B.C. residential building permits soared to a record $2.1 billion in April, according to Central 1 credit union’s chief economist.

Writing in Business in Vancouver, Bryan Yu reported that multi-family dwelling permits rose 75.2% with, with 7,200 new permits issued for multi-unit construction projects in areas such as Surrey and Coquitlam, according to Yu. Single-dwelling residential permits also increased but not as much, according to BIV, posting a 1.1% gain compared to an 8% increase in March.

Overall building permits jumped 81.1% to a seasonally adjusted $3.1 billion, exceeding the previous high set in June 2023.

“The 12-month moving average of permits in the province—subdued since late 2022—registered their largest gain since May 2022,” wrote Yu. “The first of many anticipated Bank of Canada interest-rate cuts will likely provide more support for construction. However, it will take several cuts to see a substantial and sustained boost in building intentions.”

Non-residential permit values rose to $1 billion in April as all subcategories generated greater permit values.

“Following notable declines in March, both industrial and commercial permit values more than tripled from March to April, while government permits issuances rose by 24%,” Yu wrote.

Almost all of B.C. markets saw more permits issued in April.