As I strolled through Halifax’s Spring Garden Road last Thursday, the buzz among parents wasn’t about the weekend’s farmers market or the upcoming harbor festival. It was about checkbooks and childcare calculations.
“We’re paying more for daycare than our mortgage,” confided Sarah Mackenzie, a marketing professional and mother of two toddlers. “Sometimes I wonder if working full-time even makes financial sense anymore.”
This conversation isn’t unique to Halifax, but a newly released report from the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA) confirms what many Nova Scotian parents already feel in their wallets: Halifax now ranks among the most expensive cities in Canada for childcare costs in 2024, with median monthly fees for infant care reaching $1,215.
The report, “Unaffordable Child Care: A Growing Crisis,” examines childcare costs across 37 Canadian cities, revealing Halifax has climbed three positions in the national rankings since last year, now sitting as the fifth most expensive city for childcare in the country.
For families in Halifax Regional Municipality, these findings aren’t just statistics. They represent kitchen table conversations about delayed homeownership, postponed second children, and career sacrifices. The report shows median toddler care costs in Halifax reached $1,065 monthly, while preschool care averages $890 – representing a 4.3% increase from 2023, outpacing inflation.
“What we’re seeing is a perfect storm,” explains Dr. Martha Friendly, executive director of the Childcare Resource and Research Unit and co-author of the report. “Halifax faces unique pressures – housing costs have jumped dramatically, the population is growing faster than childcare spaces, and provincial funding hasn’t kept pace with operational costs for centers.”
The provincial Department of Education and Early Childhood Development responded to my inquiry with a statement highlighting their commitment to the federal-provincial agreement to reach $10-a-day childcare by 2026. “We recognize the challenges families face and remain committed to our implementation timeline,” the statement read.
But for families like the Wilsons in Dartmouth, 2026 might as well be a lifetime away. “We’re spending nearly $24,000 a year for our two kids,” says Michael Wilson, a construction manager. “That’s a down payment on a house every year.”
The CCPA report points to several factors behind Halifax’s high costs. Unlike provinces like Quebec, which has had subsidized childcare for decades, Nova Scotia’s inclusion in the federal program is more recent. Additionally, Halifax’s childcare market includes a higher percentage of for-profit centers than cities like Montreal or Winnipeg, which traditionally correlate with higher fees.
Local childcare operators paint a more complex picture. “We’re caught in the middle,” explains Janine Thomas, director of Tiny Treasures Early Learning Centre in Bedford. “Rent is up 30% in three years, qualified staff demand better wages – which they absolutely deserve – but we can only raise fees so much before families simply can’t afford us.”
The economic implications extend beyond family budgets. TD Economics released research last month suggesting that every $1 invested in childcare returns approximately $1.50 to $2.80 to the broader economy through increased workforce participation and productivity.
Halifax Chamber of Commerce president Patrick Sullivan acknowledged the business impact in a recent interview. “When talented professionals can’t afford childcare, employers lose critical workforce members. We’re seeing women in particular making difficult choices between careers and childcare costs.”
The provincial implementation of the federal childcare plan has reduced fees for some families enrolled in participating centers, but the CCPA report notes a troubling trend: as regulated fees decrease in participating centers, waiting lists grow longer, driving some desperate parents to unregulated care arrangements.
“We’ve been on eight waiting lists for 11 months,” shares Jennifer MacDonald, a nurse and mother expecting her second child. “I’m supposed to return to work in six weeks, and I still don’t have childcare lined up. The affordable centers have 200+ children waiting.”
City Councillor Waye Mason points to municipal zoning and development regulations as one area where change could help. “We’re looking at ways to incentivize childcare spaces in new developments and remove barriers for home-based providers,” he noted during a community meeting last week.
The report also highlights a significant urban-rural divide, with childcare availability in rural Nova Scotia communities described as “childcare deserts” where options are scarce regardless of cost.
For many Halifax parents, the solution has become a patchwork of grandparents, split shifts between partners, and informal arrangements. Emily Chen, a self-employed graphic designer, now exclusively schedules client meetings during her mother’s weekly visits. “Tuesday and Thursday mornings are my work time. The rest is a juggling act.”
As Halifax continues growing – with population projections suggesting the HRM will reach 650,000 by 2030 – the childcare crunch will likely intensify without systemic intervention.
The report concludes with recommendations including accelerating the federal-provincial implementation timeline, increasing capital funding for new centers, and enhancing workforce development programs to address staffing shortages.
For now, Halifax parents continue calculating and recalculating their budgets, making impossible choices, and wondering why raising the next generation has become so financially punishing.
As one father told me outside a downtown daycare center, “We’re not asking for luxury. We just want to work and know our kids are safe without going broke in the process.”
