Monday, October 8th, 2007
On 10/1/2007 we uploaded the fourth quarter material pricing data. All subscribers should have received an email from RemodelMAX notifying them of this. Some of the pricing trends that RemodelMAX chose to highlight are as follows:
The housing slowdown does have some benefits:
- Drywall prices continue to drop due to lack of demand in the new housing sector, dropping 8% this year.
- Dimensional lumber and wood stud prices are down slightly in most areas, leveling off at 8% below 2006 prices.
- Plywood price increases have slowed, climbing only 4% this year.
- Concrete prices remain steady with slight declines in a few areas, leaving prices at only 5% above 2006 levels.
Also, the 7/19/07 press release from Harvard’s Joint Center for Housing Studies Leading Indicator for Remodeling Activity (LIRA)was cited:
Remodeling Growth to Remain Slow but Steady
According to Leading Indicator for Home Improvement ActivityCAMBRIDGE, MA – Even with the recent weakness in house prices and consumer confidence, growth in home improvement expenditures will hold stable in the low single digit range according to the leading indicator developed by Harvard’s Joint Center for Housing Studies. According to the Leading Indicator for Remodeling Activity (LIRA), which builds on the Remodeling Activity Indicator that the Joint Center has been releasing since 1998, homeowner spending for home improvement activity will essentially remain constant through the first quarter of 2008. Overall growth in spending for 2007 is projected to be 3.0%.
“Homeowners continue to draw on built-up equity in their homes to finance home improvements,” explains Nicolas P. Retsinas, director of the Joint Center for Housing Studies. “However, the pace of spending remains moderate and tempered in the context of a very soft housing market.”
SOURCE: Harvard’s Joint Center for Housing Studies Leading Indicator for Remodeling Activity
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Monday, October 8th, 2007
Welcome to our new blog about Construction Estimating. My name is Nolan Orfield and I am one of the co-founders of Clear Estimates, Inc. We believe that it is essential to “keep a pulse” on the opinions of our customers; in fact nearly all revisions made to the program in its last three releases were driven by feedback from Clear Estimates users. I hope this will become a place to share ideas, talk about technology trends in the construction industry, and discuss ways to improve our software. So don’t be shy! Please let us know how you feel and post comments.
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