Statistics Canada's Third-Quarter Renovation Price Index, Translated Into Budgets, Cities and Quote Timing
Credit: Homeowner.ca
Statistics Canada released its Residential Renovation Price Index for the third quarter of 2026 on November 12. The composite index for 15 census metropolitan areas reached 109.3, up from 108.1 in the second quarter and from 106.0 a year earlier. That is a 1.1% rise in one quarter and 3.1% over the year. The index tracks what renovation contractors charge, not what materials cost them, so it is the closest official measure of how your next quote has moved.
The headline number needs a translation. Apply 3.1% to a $50,000 kitchen, bathroom, roof or basement job, and the same scope of work is priced about $1,550 higher than it was a year ago. That figure is an illustration built from an index, not a forecast for your project. Your contractor, your city and your project type can all push it well above or below that line.
This piece breaks the release into the four questions that matter for a homeowner with a project on the list: what the index actually measures, how fast prices are moving compared with recent years, where and on which projects they are rising fastest, and what it means for budgets, quote timing and home-equity borrowing after the Bank of Canada's October 28 rate increase.
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The Residential Renovation Price Index (RRPI) is not a materials index. It measures the price a contractor charges to complete a defined project, and that price is built from several layers. In the words of Statistics Canada's November 12 release, contractor prices include the value of all materials, labour, equipment, overhead and profit required to construct each project, and exclude value-added taxes and any design costs.
That composition explains why a jump in one input rarely moves a whole quote by the same amount. Lumber, tile or a cabinet line is one slice of materials, and materials are one slice of the price. Labour rates, crew availability and the contractor's own margin all sit in the same number.
The structure is fixed. The index covers eight project groups containing 37 individual projects: exterior additions or improvements, flooring, heating and air conditioning equipment, interior additions or remodels, plumbing fixtures and equipment, property improvements, roofing, and windows and doors. It is measured in 15 cities: St. John's, Halifax, Moncton, Québec City, Montréal, Ottawa (Ontario part), Toronto, London, Winnipeg, Regina, Saskatoon, Calgary, Edmonton, Vancouver and Victoria. The reference period is 2023, so a reading of 109.3 means contractor prices are 9.3% above their 2023 average.
Three limits matter when you read the number against your own project.
First, it prices a model project. Statistics Canada selects projects that represent the median for their class in price, size, design and construction method, and it avoids unusual shapes or materials. A high-end kitchen or a heritage-home bathroom is not what is being priced.
Second, it uses competitive bid prices from an established group of contractors in each city, not list prices. The agency itself notes that the movements may not match the contracts homeowners ultimately accepted in a bidding process.
Third, it can be revised. Each release can update the previous quarter, and the second-quarter figure of 108.1 was revised in this one. The index is also not seasonally adjusted.
The Residential Renovation Price Index (RRPI) is not a materials index. It measures the price a contractor charges to complete a defined project, and that price is built from several layers. In the words of Statistics Canada's November 12 release, contractor prices include the value of all materials, labour, equipment, overhead and profit required to construct each project, and exclude value-added taxes and any design costs.
That composition explains why a jump in one input rarely moves a whole quote by the same amount. Lumber, tile or a cabinet line is one slice of materials, and materials are one slice of the price. Labour rates, crew availability and the contractor's own margin all sit in the same number.
The structure is fixed. The index covers eight project groups containing 37 individual projects: exterior additions or improvements, flooring, heating and air conditioning equipment, interior additions or remodels, plumbing fixtures and equipment, property improvements, roofing, and windows and doors. It is measured in 15 cities: St. John's, Halifax, Moncton, Québec City, Montréal, Ottawa (Ontario part), Toronto, London, Winnipeg, Regina, Saskatoon, Calgary, Edmonton, Vancouver and Victoria. The reference period is 2023, so a reading of 109.3 means contractor prices are 9.3% above their 2023 average.
Three limits matter when you read the number against your own project.
First, it prices a model project. Statistics Canada selects projects that represent the median for their class in price, size, design and construction method, and it avoids unusual shapes or materials. A high-end kitchen or a heritage-home bathroom is not what is being priced.
Second, it uses competitive bid prices from an established group of contractors in each city, not list prices. The agency itself notes that the movements may not match the contracts homeowners ultimately accepted in a bidding process.
Third, it can be revised. Each release can update the previous quarter, and the second-quarter figure of 108.1 was revised in this one. The index is also not seasonally adjusted.
The RRPI excludes GST, HST, PST and QST, and it excludes design fees. Any dollar translation of the index, including the $1,550 in this article, is a pre-tax figure. Sales tax is charged on top of whatever the contractor's price becomes.
The 3.1% annual increase is a step up, but a modest one. From the end of 2024 through the second quarter of 2026, annual increases held in a narrow band between 2.1% and 2.6%. The third quarter broke above that range, matching the 3.1% recorded in the third quarter of 2024. The 1.1% quarterly gain is the largest since the third quarter of 2023.
| Q3 2025 | 106.0 | +0.3% | +2.1% |
| Q4 2025 | 106.5 | +0.5% | +2.1% |
| Q1 2026 | 107.4 | +0.8% | +2.6% |
| Q2 2026 | 108.1 | +0.7% | +2.3% |
| Q3 2026 | 109.3 | +1.1% | +3.1% |
Source: Statistics Canada, Table 18-10-0286-01, composite of 15 census metropolitan areas.
The bigger story sits behind the current quarter. Annual renovation price increases peaked at about 20% at the end of 2021, and the composite has climbed from 69.9 in the third quarter of 2020 to 109.3 today. That is roughly 56% in six years. A job priced at $50,000 in mid-2020 would index to about $78,200 now. Today's 3.1% is small against that cumulative reset, which is why an estimate from even two or three years ago is no longer a reliable budget anchor.
The trend also lines up with what the construction side reported over the summer.
Second-quarter data showed alterations and improvements leading residential construction growth as renovation demand held up.
The 3.1% annual increase is a step up, but a modest one. From the end of 2024 through the second quarter of 2026, annual increases held in a narrow band between 2.1% and 2.6%. The third quarter broke above that range, matching the 3.1% recorded in the third quarter of 2024. The 1.1% quarterly gain is the largest since the third quarter of 2023.
| Q3 2025 | 106.0 | +0.3% | +2.1% |
| Q4 2025 | 106.5 | +0.5% | +2.1% |
| Q1 2026 | 107.4 | +0.8% | +2.6% |
| Q2 2026 | 108.1 | +0.7% | +2.3% |
| Q3 2026 | 109.3 | +1.1% | +3.1% |
Source: Statistics Canada, Table 18-10-0286-01, composite of 15 census metropolitan areas.
The bigger story sits behind the current quarter. Annual renovation price increases peaked at about 20% at the end of 2021, and the composite has climbed from 69.9 in the third quarter of 2020 to 109.3 today. That is roughly 56% in six years. A job priced at $50,000 in mid-2020 would index to about $78,200 now. Today's 3.1% is small against that cumulative reset, which is why an estimate from even two or three years ago is no longer a reliable budget anchor.
The trend also lines up with what the construction side reported over the summer.
Second-quarter data showed alterations and improvements leading residential construction growth as renovation demand held up.
The national figure is a weighted average, and it hides a wide gap. Over the year to the third quarter, contractor prices rose 7.8% in Québec City and 6.6% in Montréal, against 2.0% in Toronto and 0.5% in Vancouver. The two largest renovation markets in the country are running well under the national pace, while most mid-sized cities are running above it.
| Québec City | +7.8% | +2.2% | about $3,900 |
| Montréal | +6.6% | +1.2% | about $3,300 |
| Halifax | +6.0% | +1.7% | about $3,000 |
| Regina | +5.3% | +1.6% | about $2,650 |
| Victoria | +5.3% | +1.6% | about $2,650 |
| London | +5.1% | +1.6% | about $2,550 |
| Ottawa (Ontario part) | +4.9% | +1.9% | about $2,450 |
| Saskatoon | +4.0% | +1.1% | about $2,000 |
| St. John's | +3.5% | +1.0% | about $1,750 |
| Winnipeg | +3.5% | +1.2% | about $1,750 |
| Moncton | +3.0% | +1.1% | about $1,500 |
| Edmonton | +2.5% | +1.0% | about $1,250 |
| Calgary | +2.2% | +1.3% | about $1,100 |
| Toronto | +2.0% | +1.0% | about $1,000 |
| Vancouver | +0.5% | +0.6% | about $250 |
| 15-city composite | +3.1% | +1.1% | about $1,550 |
Source: Homeowner.ca calculations from Statistics Canada Table 18-10-0286-01. Dollar figures apply each city's annual change to $50,000 and are illustrations, not quotes.
If you live outside these 15 cities, there is no official local reading. The nearest measured city is a reasonable reference point, but treat it as a direction rather than a number.
The release does not publish a national figure for kitchens, bathrooms or any other project group. Statistics Canada reports project groups and project types city by city, and only the all-projects composite is rolled up across the 15 cities. So the honest answer to "which renovations are rising fastest?" is a pattern that repeats across cities, not a single league table.
The pattern is clear. Heating and air conditioning equipment was the fastest-rising project group in every one of the 15 cities, up between 10.0% (Vancouver) and 14.5% (Montréal) over the year. Interior remodels, by contrast, rose less than the overall index in most cities. The headline average is being pulled up by mechanical work more than by kitchens and bathrooms.
| Project | Fastest-rising cities (annual change) | Slowest cities (annual change) |
|---|---|---|
| Kitchen remodel | Halifax +7.1%, Québec City +5.7%, Montréal +5.6% | Toronto +1.4%, Vancouver -1.5% |
| Bathroom remodel | Halifax +5.9%, Québec City +3.4%, Montréal +3.0% | Calgary +0.5%, Vancouver -0.2% |
| Finishing a basement | Québec City +9.6%, Montréal +9.0%, Regina +6.2% | Calgary -0.7%, Vancouver -0.8% |
| Full shingle replacement | London +10.4%, Regina +9.7%, Ottawa +6.8% | Toronto +3.9%, Vancouver -0.1% |
The practical point: a city's overall number can mislead for a specific job. In Toronto, the composite rose 2.0%, but a full shingle replacement rose 3.9% and a basement finish only 0.5%. Match the project row to your project before you adjust a budget.
The national figure is a weighted average, and it hides a wide gap. Over the year to the third quarter, contractor prices rose 7.8% in Québec City and 6.6% in Montréal, against 2.0% in Toronto and 0.5% in Vancouver. The two largest renovation markets in the country are running well under the national pace, while most mid-sized cities are running above it.
| Québec City | +7.8% | +2.2% | about $3,900 |
| Montréal | +6.6% | +1.2% | about $3,300 |
| Halifax | +6.0% | +1.7% | about $3,000 |
| Regina | +5.3% | +1.6% | about $2,650 |
| Victoria | +5.3% | +1.6% | about $2,650 |
| London | +5.1% | +1.6% | about $2,550 |
| Ottawa (Ontario part) | +4.9% | +1.9% | about $2,450 |
| Saskatoon | +4.0% | +1.1% | about $2,000 |
| St. John's | +3.5% | +1.0% | about $1,750 |
| Winnipeg | +3.5% | +1.2% | about $1,750 |
| Moncton | +3.0% | +1.1% | about $1,500 |
| Edmonton | +2.5% | +1.0% | about $1,250 |
| Calgary | +2.2% | +1.3% | about $1,100 |
| Toronto | +2.0% | +1.0% | about $1,000 |
| Vancouver | +0.5% | +0.6% | about $250 |
| 15-city composite | +3.1% | +1.1% | about $1,550 |
Source: Homeowner.ca calculations from Statistics Canada Table 18-10-0286-01. Dollar figures apply each city's annual change to $50,000 and are illustrations, not quotes.
If you live outside these 15 cities, there is no official local reading. The nearest measured city is a reasonable reference point, but treat it as a direction rather than a number.
The release does not publish a national figure for kitchens, bathrooms or any other project group. Statistics Canada reports project groups and project types city by city, and only the all-projects composite is rolled up across the 15 cities. So the honest answer to "which renovations are rising fastest?" is a pattern that repeats across cities, not a single league table.
The pattern is clear. Heating and air conditioning equipment was the fastest-rising project group in every one of the 15 cities, up between 10.0% (Vancouver) and 14.5% (Montréal) over the year. Interior remodels, by contrast, rose less than the overall index in most cities. The headline average is being pulled up by mechanical work more than by kitchens and bathrooms.
| Project | Fastest-rising cities (annual change) | Slowest cities (annual change) |
|---|---|---|
| Kitchen remodel | Halifax +7.1%, Québec City +5.7%, Montréal +5.6% | Toronto +1.4%, Vancouver -1.5% |
| Bathroom remodel | Halifax +5.9%, Québec City +3.4%, Montréal +3.0% | Calgary +0.5%, Vancouver -0.2% |
| Finishing a basement | Québec City +9.6%, Montréal +9.0%, Regina +6.2% | Calgary -0.7%, Vancouver -0.8% |
| Full shingle replacement | London +10.4%, Regina +9.7%, Ottawa +6.8% | Toronto +3.9%, Vancouver -0.1% |
The practical point: a city's overall number can mislead for a specific job. In Toronto, the composite rose 2.0%, but a full shingle replacement rose 3.9% and a basement finish only 0.5%. Match the project row to your project before you adjust a budget.
The single sharpest move in the release belongs to heat pumps. The heat pump project index rose between 16.0% and 17.0% from the second quarter to the third quarter in all 15 cities. In Toronto it went from 115.2 to 133.7; in Montréal from 115.7 to 134.5. Over the year, the increase runs from 18.8% to 21.4%.
Two features make this unusual. The move is almost identical from St. John's to Victoria, which points to a national input rather than local labour markets. And it happened in one quarter after a year of modest changes. Furnace pricing, by comparison, varies widely: up 1.5% over the year in Vancouver, 10.2% in Toronto and 18.0% in Montréal.
Statistics Canada's release does not explain the cause, and this article does not assign one.
Renovation index prices are collected around the 15th of the middle month of each quarter, according to Statistics Canada's survey documentation. The third-quarter reading reflects mid-August pricing, before the September 8 counter-tariffs and the October 28 rate increase took effect.
For a homeowner comparing a heat pump with a furnace replacement this winter, the index adds one useful fact: the installed-price gap between the two moved materially in a single quarter. Quotes gathered before mid-2026 for a heat pump installation are especially likely to be out of date.
The cleanest way to use the RRPI is as a correction factor for an old number, not as a prediction for a new one. If your budget is anchored to a quote or estimate from a year ago, scaling it by your city's annual change gives a better starting point than the original figure. If it is anchored to a 2023 estimate, the national index says contractor prices are now about 9.3% higher than the 2023 average.
Remember the tax layer. Because the index excludes value-added taxes, the $1,550 illustration on a $50,000 project becomes about $1,750 with 13% HST in Ontario, and about $1,630 where only the 5% GST applies. Quebec, British Columbia, Saskatchewan and Manitoba add provincial sales tax in ways that depend on how the contract is structured, so check the Canada Revenue Agency's rate guidance and your contractor's invoice terms.
The index supports three practical habits without telling anyone to rush a project.
| Situation | What the index suggests | What to ask for |
|---|---|---|
| Your budget rests on a quote more than six months old | The price has likely drifted, by roughly your city's annual change or more for HVAC work | A refreshed written quote on the same scope |
| You have a current quote but won't sign for months | Prices can move between quote and contract | How long the quoted price is valid, in writing |
| You are setting a preliminary budget | Recent annual increases ran 2% to 3% nationally, higher in some cities | An escalation allowance sized to your city and project, kept separate from your contingency |
The escalation allowance and the contingency do different jobs. A contingency covers surprises inside the walls. An escalation allowance covers the passage of time between estimate and contract. Folding them together makes both harder to manage.
What the index cannot do is tell you whether prices will be higher by spring. Nothing in the release forecasts future quarters, and a single quarter's acceleration is not a trend on its own.
Price movement after you sign is a separate question governed by your contract and provincial consumer law.
That is covered in our guide to what your province says about mid-job price increases.
The cleanest way to use the RRPI is as a correction factor for an old number, not as a prediction for a new one. If your budget is anchored to a quote or estimate from a year ago, scaling it by your city's annual change gives a better starting point than the original figure. If it is anchored to a 2023 estimate, the national index says contractor prices are now about 9.3% higher than the 2023 average.
Remember the tax layer. Because the index excludes value-added taxes, the $1,550 illustration on a $50,000 project becomes about $1,750 with 13% HST in Ontario, and about $1,630 where only the 5% GST applies. Quebec, British Columbia, Saskatchewan and Manitoba add provincial sales tax in ways that depend on how the contract is structured, so check the Canada Revenue Agency's rate guidance and your contractor's invoice terms.
The index supports three practical habits without telling anyone to rush a project.
| Situation | What the index suggests | What to ask for |
|---|---|---|
| Your budget rests on a quote more than six months old | The price has likely drifted, by roughly your city's annual change or more for HVAC work | A refreshed written quote on the same scope |
| You have a current quote but won't sign for months | Prices can move between quote and contract | How long the quoted price is valid, in writing |
| You are setting a preliminary budget | Recent annual increases ran 2% to 3% nationally, higher in some cities | An escalation allowance sized to your city and project, kept separate from your contingency |
The escalation allowance and the contingency do different jobs. A contingency covers surprises inside the walls. An escalation allowance covers the passage of time between estimate and contract. Folding them together makes both harder to manage.
What the index cannot do is tell you whether prices will be higher by spring. Nothing in the release forecasts future quarters, and a single quarter's acceleration is not a trend on its own.
Price movement after you sign is a separate question governed by your contract and provincial consumer law.
That is covered in our guide to what your province says about mid-job price increases.
On October 28, the Bank of Canada raised its policy rate by 25 basis points to 2.5%, its first increase since 2023, and said a further increase could be needed. The next scheduled announcement is December 9, 2026.
The big banks moved their prime rate from 4.45% to 4.70% effective the next day, as National Bank's announcement confirmed. Prime had been unchanged since October 2025.
That matters for renovators because many fund projects with home equity. According to the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada, a variable-rate home equity line of credit is typically based on the lender's prime rate, and rising rates can make a large balance harder to repay. A HELOC can be up to 65% of a home's value; refinancing usually goes up to 80%.
At the scale of a typical project, price drift is the bigger number. A 0.25-point rise in prime adds about $125 a year in interest on a $50,000 variable-rate balance, a little over $10 a month. The contractor price drift on the same $50,000 project over the past year is about $1,550 before tax. Interest is ongoing and compounds with any further increases, so the comparison is not one-for-one, but it shows where the larger budget pressure sits right now.
The rate move also affects fixed borrowing through a different channel.
Recent fixed-rate increases at the big banks are covered in our report on what the latest fixed-rate moves add to a renewal.
Which financing tool fits a given project depends on your equity, your income, your existing mortgage terms and your lender, and that is a conversation for your lender or a licensed adviser. What the two releases establish together is simpler: contractor prices are rising faster than they were a year ago, borrowing on prime now costs more, and a budget built on last year's numbers is likely short on both counts.
On October 28, the Bank of Canada raised its policy rate by 25 basis points to 2.5%, its first increase since 2023, and said a further increase could be needed. The next scheduled announcement is December 9, 2026.
The big banks moved their prime rate from 4.45% to 4.70% effective the next day, as National Bank's announcement confirmed. Prime had been unchanged since October 2025.
That matters for renovators because many fund projects with home equity. According to the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada, a variable-rate home equity line of credit is typically based on the lender's prime rate, and rising rates can make a large balance harder to repay. A HELOC can be up to 65% of a home's value; refinancing usually goes up to 80%.
At the scale of a typical project, price drift is the bigger number. A 0.25-point rise in prime adds about $125 a year in interest on a $50,000 variable-rate balance, a little over $10 a month. The contractor price drift on the same $50,000 project over the past year is about $1,550 before tax. Interest is ongoing and compounds with any further increases, so the comparison is not one-for-one, but it shows where the larger budget pressure sits right now.
The rate move also affects fixed borrowing through a different channel.
Recent fixed-rate increases at the big banks are covered in our report on what the latest fixed-rate moves add to a renewal.
Which financing tool fits a given project depends on your equity, your income, your existing mortgage terms and your lender, and that is a conversation for your lender or a licensed adviser. What the two releases establish together is simpler: contractor prices are rising faster than they were a year ago, borrowing on prime now costs more, and a budget built on last year's numbers is likely short on both counts.
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About the Author
Ryan is the founder of Homeowner.ca and a proud Canadian homeowner based in Guelph, Ontario. Over his 25-year career in digital publishing, he has focused on transforming complex information into clear, practical guidance that helps people make confident, well-informed decisions.
