In general, the prices of construction materials are advancing slightly, but until commercial construction is on the rise, prices for many materials will remain below the peaks of 2008.
After falling precipitously from late 2008 through 2009, hot rolled steel bar is making an upwards correction of 20 percent. Despite this hefty increase, prices are not near the levels of early 2008. Look for moderate to flat increases for the rest of this year. For the past 18 months, concrete block (CMU) has been languishing with prices fluctuating in the 1 to 2 percent range. After years of large increases, crushed stone is moderating. Public works projects are still slow to reach the marketplace, and stone has seen only a 1 percent increase over last year, in contrast to the 10-percent annual increases from 2004 to 2009. After a slight decline of 1 percent in 2009, glass has dropped another 7 percent to date. Like concrete block, precast concrete has seen only minor fluctuations in price over the last 18 months.
For more facilities cost information, visit the BUILDINGS bookstore at www.bnibuildings.com.
