Articles

While volatile materials prices are unfortunately a fact of life, they typically are caused by strong demand. At present, that is not the case. We have a very healthy home building and remodeling market, although nothing compared to the housing boom prior to the Great Recession. Nonresidential building activity however is currently below levels it was at a year ago in the middle of the pandemic. Instead, we have a serious supply problem primarily caused by pandemic-induced disruptions to the supply chain. By and large, U.S industries are more vulnerable to supply chain disruptions now for three reasons: the prevalence of just-in-time inventory management at U.S. producers, the high share of products used in the U.S. that are imported and that these imports come from a broader range of countries.  Read More

Real gross domestic product (GDP) increased at an annual rate of 2.0 percent in the third quarter of 2021, following an increase of 6.7 percent in the second quarter. Read More

Architecture firms continue to report increasing demand for design services in September, according to a new report from The American Institute of Architects (AIA). Read More

Mohawk Industries, Lamosa and SCG lead the rankings. All leading groups are confirming growth forecasts this year, while 2021 rankings will see some changes in positioning due to the major acquisitions completed recently. Read More

The Leading Indicator of Remodeling Activity (LIRA) projects year-over-year gains in annual improvement and repair spending will reach 9% in the fourth quarter and maintain that pace into 2022, according to the by the Remodeling Futures Program at the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University.  Read More

Single-family housing production held steady in September as strong demand helped to offset ongoing building material supply chain disruptions. Meanwhile, declines in multifamily  production helped to push overall housing starts in September down 1.6% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.56 million, according to a report from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the U.S. Census Bureau. Read More

Single-family housing production held steady in September as strong demand helped to offset ongoing building material supply chain disruptions. Meanwhile, declines in multifamily production helped to push overall housing starts in September down 1.6 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.56 million, according to a report from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the U.S. Census Bureau. Read More

The Q4 2021 Houzz Renovation Barometer found that businesses anticipate strong activity through the end of the year. With steady increases in backlogs since the beginning of the pandemic, construction professionals in particular report wait times of nearly three months before new projects can begin. Read More

The Architecture Billings Index (ABI) score for September was 56.6, which is up from August’s score of 55.6, according to a new report today from The American Institute of Architects (AIA).  Read More

Privately‐owned housing starts in September were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,555,000, 1.6% below the revised August estimate of 1,580,000 but 7.4% above the September 2020 rate of 1,448,000, the U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development jointly announced. Read More