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| In August 2018, Prince George's unemployment rate was 4.4%, a decrease of 1.5% compared to the same month in 2017 when it was 5.9%. The unemployment rate of 4.4% for Prince George was lower than both the provincial rate of 5.3% and the national rate of 6.0%.
Prince George's employment rate in August 2018 was 69.3%, an increase from the same month in August 2017 when it was 68.0% which represents a 1.3
% positive change. The employment rate of 69.3% for Prince George was substantially higher than British Columbia's provincial rate of 61.4% and Canada's national rate of 61.4%.
Total employment in the Cariboo Economic Development region was 83,400 during August 2018. This represents a decrease of 600 jobs when compared to the previous month. The Cariboo region has added 4,100 jobs since January 2018 when total employment was 79,300. The Paper Manufacturing category had the highest increase in August with an additional 500 jobs being added and Public Administration added 400 jobs. Job numbers decreased by 600 in Primary and Secondary Education while the Retail Trade category decreased by 600 jobs.
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The Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) reported the average absorbed single-detached unit price for new housing construction for August 2018 was $538,291 with 11 new units sold in Prince George. For August 2017, CMHC data for average absorbed single detached unit price for new housing construction was not available but 13 new houses sold. CMHC year-to-date data for Prince George indicates that 212 new units sold in 2018 compared to 2017 when 78 new units sold in the same time frame; this is an increase of 171.8%.
The BC Northern Real Estate Board (BCNREB) reported home sales in Northern BC totalled 449 units in August 2018, a increase of 17.2% from August 2017. The average price of homes sold in Northern BC was $291,870 in August 2018, an increase of 1.3% from August 2017. This average residential price is useful for establishing trends and comparisons over time but due to the wide selection of housing over a vast geographic area that BCNREB serves, over 600,000 square kilometres, actual community averages may vary.
The dollar value of all home sales for August 2018 totalled $131.0 million; this is an increase of 18.7% from the same month in 2017. Active residential listings on the MLS System numbered 2,441 units at the end of August, a decline of 12.6% when compared to August 2017.
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The Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC ) reported 173 (17 SFD, 156 multiples) total housing starts in Prince George during August 2018 compared to 27 (19 SFD, 8 multiples) in August 2017. This is an increase of 540.7% over the same month last year. There were 12 (12 SFD, 0 multiple) completions in August 2018 while August 2017 had zero completions for both single family and multiple family dwellings. The high number of multiple family dwellings starts for August 2018 is due to a large project by Seymour Pacific Developments in College Heights.
Year-to-date total housing starts in Prince George were 288 up to August 2018 compared to 130 total housing starts through August 2017, an increase of 121.5%. Year-to-date total housing completions in Prince George reinforce this economic activity; in 2017 Prince George recorded 43 total housing completions during this time period while 2018 year-to-date total housing completions totalled 266, an increase of 518.6%. Both statistics reflect strong performance for the construction industry in Prince George this year.
Across BC, housing starts increased by 28.6% from 3,018 (991 SFD, 2,027 multiples) in August 2017 to 3,880 (886 SFD, 2,994 multiples) in August 2018. The total number of completions in BC decreased by 2.1% from 2,233 (944 SFD, 1,289 multiples) in August 2017 to 2,187 (1,056 SFD, 1,131 multiples) in August 2018. |
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The City of Prince George issued 61 building permits valued at $13,282,240 in August 2018, including: $8,248,240 in single family, $1,432,000 in multiple family permits, $2,302,000 in commercial permits, and $1,300,000 in industrial permits.
This is a 2.8% decrease in dollar value of total permits over August 2017 when 44 permits were issued at a value of $13,668,351.
Year-to-date building permit statistics continue to track the high level of building activity in Prince George for 2018. In August 2018 a total value of $147,006,110 in building permits were issued compared to August 2017 when year-to-date building permits came in at $87,351,125. This represents an increase of $59,654,985 or 68.3% over the same period last year. Recognizing construction activity varies each month due to a number of factors, this is a very positive economic indicator for the first eight months of 2018.
The complete
Monthly Building Permit Report
for August 2018 and detailed descriptions of building permits issued is available on the City of Prince George website.
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The City of Prince George issued 40 new business licenses and 7 business license renewals in August 2018.
The
Monthly Business License Report for August 2018 is
available on the
City of Prince George website.
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In August 2018, 42,633 passengers moved through the Prince George International Airport (YXS). This was a decrease of 7.3% or 3,361 fewer passengers over August 2017 when passenger volume was 45,994. Year-to-date, air passenger traffic at YXS for 2018 is up 2.3% over volumes recorded in 2017.
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The City of Prince George Economic Development Division offers a
dashboard that provides relevant
up-to-date
economic data including the following: population, demographics, labour, tax, quality of life, housing transportation, household income, education, companies, and utilities. Powered by Townfolio, this statistical tool is designed to help businesses and the community gain access to up-to-date statistics about the Prince George economy.
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