One would be hard-pressed to find anyone in the housing industry who disagrees that affordability remains the biggest challenge in the U.S. today. Yet affordability doesn’t tell the whole story – a deeper dive is necessary to explain the issues plaguing our housing market now. Here are three underreported housing stories that deserve more attention.
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A new study from Evernest, a real estate and property management firm based in Birmingham, AL, quantifies the impact that tariffs on construction materials such as steel, copper, drywall, and lumber will have on the cost of building a new home in each state.
The study results show that tariffs are already impacting costs for materials, with prices rising from a low of $26,180 in Oklahoma to $102,400 in Hawaii.
The Joint Center for Housing Studies (JCHS) at Harvard University recently released The State of the Nation’s Housing 2024 report. This year’s report details some significant challenges confronting the U.S. residential housing market. These include increasing housing costs, record cost burdens for homeowners and low for-sale inventory, which has prompted buyers to seek new construction homes, however unaffordable.
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Building industry members have an opportunity from November 11-13 to learn about Passive House buildings in the U.S. and globally during the International Passive House Open Days. Organized by the International Passive House Association, the event will provide the opportunity for those interested in these highly energy-efficient buildings to learn first-hand how a Passive House build or retrofit works and what it’s like to live and work in a Passive House building.
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Nationwide the construction industry needs 650,000 more workers to meet building demand this year alone, according to experts. Adding to the urgency is that up to 40 percent of the construction workforce is expected to retire by 2030.[1] After many years of bad news about the construction trades workforce comes the good news this week that enrollment in skilled trades programs has boomed since the start of the pandemic.
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According to a report issued by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) this week, 2021 was the sixth warmest year on record.[1] Further, the hottest decade ever recorded occurred between 2009 and 2019.[2] The planet’s warming trend is forcing home builders globally to get creative to address the challenges we’re confronting. Here are five ways the climate is reshaping housing.
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John McManus retired last August from Hanley Wood after a nearly 20-year career in various senior editorial roles. Post “retirement,” McManus launched a brand-new publishing endeavor, The Builder’s Daily, a digitally published newsletter filled with thought-provoking and informative insights for the building industry. Insulation Institute recently talked with McManus about his new venture and the changes that are happening in the construction industry.
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Record heatwaves remind us that residential air conditioners (AC) are a wonderful invention, and as sweltering heat blankets much of the country, the demand for home AC will only increase. Unfortunately, this only drives CO2 emissions higher, increasing global warming. One way that we can ensure that we reduce greenhouse gas emissions as much as possible is by adopting more stringent building energy codes that offer higher levels of insulation and air sealing, reducing the amount of energy needed for air conditioning.
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The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy recently issued a preliminary analysis of the 2021 International Energy Conservation Code (IECC), noting that the code will improve energy efficiency in residential buildings. DOE’s technical analysis of the updated code (relative to the 2018 IECC edition) pegs national savings of approximately:
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An increasing focus on mitigating climate change and constructing sustainable, resilient buildings has created a green buildings industry exploding with job opportunities. However, many job seekers simply don’t know those occupations exist.
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