Northeast B.C. housing up 40 per cent: CPABC annual report

FORT ST. JOHN, B.C – House construction numbers in northeast B.C. increased by 40 per cent last year, according to an annual report by the Chartered Professional Accountants of British Columbia.

In 2020, 105 housing units began construction in Dawson Creek and Fort St. John, up from the 75 units started in 2019, says CPABC’s ‘BC Check-Up: Invest’ report.

There were a larger number of housing starts in the third and fourth quarters, with just 22 units starting construction in the first half of the year. There were 27 homes started in the third quarter and 56 in the fourth.

“Northeast B.C., which is home to a wide variety of natural resource and industries, has offered investors an excellent place to allocate their capital,” said Ben Sander, FCPA, FCA, partner at Sander Rose Bone Grindle. “While the economic uncertainty from the COVID-19 pandemic put downward pressure on housing investment in the first half of 2020, the number of housing starts in the region’s largest municipalities bounced back in the second half of the year.”

The number of attached units, such as condos and townhomes, rose by 165 per cent last year, which caused a 40 per cent increase in construction. There were 53 attached units, up from 20 in 2019 and 52 housing units, down 55 last year,  that started construction in 2020.

“The recovery in housing investment through 2020 was driven by smaller, attached units. While there was a small dip in detached starts, the region fared much better than the provincial average where overall starts were down nearly a fifth,” continued Sander. “Another positive sign in 2020 is that, despite the economic turmoil, the region continued to see increases in the amount of capital being allocated for major projects.”

Major projects proposed, under construction, or on hold stood at $40.3 billion, accounting for over 10 per cent of all projects across the province.

The largest project under construction is the Site C dam, estimated at $10.7 billion.

The five largest proposed natural resource projects are expected to cost $ 9.6 million, including two projects that are set to begin construction in 2021 – the Sundance Low Carbon Gasoline Refinery ($2.5 billion) and the Sundance Clean Methanol Refinery ($1.5 billion).

“While it is promising to have these mega projects providing economic activity to the region, it is critical that the benefits are realized across our communities. Despite the ongoing activity, Northeast B.C.’s economic activity such as employment has struggled through the pandemic,” continued Sander. “Thankfully, the activity in the natural resource sector has been noticeably up recently and several additional projects are slated to begin soon.”

Sanders says there needs to be a strategy moving forward to ensure residents benefit from the large capital flowing into the region.

“In 2021, several more projects are anticipated to begin, and there is no doubt they will be a critical component to the region’s economic recovery from the deep 2020 recession.”