StatsCan’s first reno index shows slight cost increase in Q2 2024

A snapshot of Canadian reno costs

In the second quarter of 2024, residential renovation prices increased 0.7% in Canada, following a 0.8% increase in the first quarter.

BC saw the largest quarterly price increases in the second quarter at 1.4%, followed by Saskatchewan at 1.3% and Newfoundland and Labrador at 1.2%. Quebec experienced the smallest quarterly increase at 0.4%.

Across the 11 CMAs measured, Victoria and Vancouver experienced the strongest quarterly growth, both rising 1.4% in the second quarter.

Saskatoon trailed closely, with renovation prices rising 1.3% in the second quarter, followed by Calgary at 1.2%. Ottawa (+0.3%) and Montréal (+0.2%) experienced the smallest quarterly increases.

While the costs for individual renovations naturally varies by project, location and more, renovations in heating and air conditioning equipment experienced the strongest quarterly increases in the second quarter, followed by exterior additions or improvements.

Across the country, the roofing, exterior additions or improvement, and windows and doors renovation project groups experienced the strongest growths in prices year over year.

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National price increases

The national composite RRPI increased 3.7% year over year in the second quarter. BC experienced the strongest year-over-year growth at 5.8%, followed by Saskatchewan at 5.7%. Composite prices in Quebec experienced the smallest annual increase, rising 1.3% year over year.

From the RRPI's first available data in the first quarter of 2017 to the second quarter of 2024, the national composite index has increased 66.5%. Ontario experienced the largest increase, with the provincial composite index increasing 91.8%, thanks to strong price pressure in Toronto. BC was next at 56.9%, and Newfoundland and Labrador trailed closely in third at 56.4%. Saskatchewan (+40.5%) and New Brunswick (+40.1%) experienced the lowest price pressure.

The quarterly growth in renovation prices remained relatively modest from the first quarter of 2017 through the second quarter of 2020, ranging from 0.1% to 1.7%, but during the pandemic lockdown period, the costs to complete residential renovation projects began to rise sharply.

The quarterly growth in renovation completions rose from 0.3% in the second quarter of 2020, to a peak of 5.9% in the first quarter of 2021. From the second quarter of 2020 to the second quarter of 2021, the national composite RRPI rose 14.7%. It remained elevated until the second quarter of 2022, with prices rising 18.9% from the second quarter of 2021 to the second quarter of 2022.

Price pressure continues to remain uneven across the country, which the RRPI attributes to both local demographic and labour availability trends.

Methodology

Price data are obtained predominantly from the Construction Contractors Survey and supplemented by “several administrative data sources,” according to a release. The contractor's prices include the value of all materials, labour, equipment, overhead and profit required to construct each project. They exclude value-added taxes and any costs for project design. For aggregation, project group weights are derived from the Survey of Household Spending, while the relative importance of each CMA is derived from renovation building permit data.

The index is not seasonally adjusted.

Sources

1. Statistics Canada: Residential Renovation Price Index, second quarter 2024 (October 25, 2024)