Building Design+Construction's monthly Market Intelligence Report offers a snapshot of the health of the U.S. building construction industry, including the commercial, multifamily, institutional, and industrial building sectors. This report tracks the latest metrics related to construction spending, demand for design services, contractor backlogs, and material price trends.
Data for the Market Intelligence Report is gleaned from reputable economic sources, including the American Institute of Architects, Associated Builders and Contractors, and the U.S. Census Bureau.
Here are some of the highlights from the March 2024 report:
- U.S. construction spending for commercial, institutional, industrial, and multifamily buildings continues its historic run, rising to $863.3 billion in annualized spending as of late January (up 1.4% from the previous month and 16.1% from the previous year).
- When looking at year-over-year spending growth, the following sectors saw the biggest jump: manufacturing, public safety, religious, educational, amusement/recreation, and healthcare.
- Construction backlogs shrink: The average U.S. contractor had 8.1 months worth of building construction work in the pipeline as of February 2024, down 1.3 months from the same time last year. There are a variety of factors at play here, namely an increase in project postponements and cancellations, the high cost of capital, and inflation.
- AIA's Architecture Billings Index dipped to 45.4, extending its streak of sub-50 marks to seven months. This means that, among the architecture firms surveyed by AIA in January, more firms than not reported a decrease in billings.
- Construction material prices rose 1.4% in February, making it back-to-back months of rising prices following a streak of three consecutive monthly declines.
Related Stories
Self-Storage Facilities | Dec 16, 2022
Self-storage development booms in high multifamily construction areas
A 2022 RentCafe analysis finds that self-storage units swelled in conjunction with metros’ growth in apartment complexes.
Market Data | Dec 13, 2022
Contractors' backlog of work reaches three-year high
U.S. construction firms have, on average, 9.2 months of work in the pipeline, according to ABC's latest Construction Backlog Indicator.
Contractors | Dec 6, 2022
Slow payments cost the construction industry $208 billion in 2022
The cost of floating payments for wages and invoices represents $208 billion in excess cost to the construction industry, a 53% increase from 2021, according to a survey by Rabbet, a provider of construction finance software.
Mass Timber | Dec 1, 2022
Cross laminated timber market forecast to more than triple by end of decade
Cross laminated timber (CLT) is gaining acceptance as an eco-friendly building material, a trend that will propel its growth through the end of the 2020s. The CLT market is projected to more than triple from $1.11 billion in 2021 to $3.72 billion by 2030, according to a report from Polaris Market Research.
Market Data | Nov 15, 2022
Construction demand will be a double-edged sword in 2023
Skanska’s latest forecast sees shorter lead times and receding inflation, but the industry isn’t out of the woods yet.
Reconstruction & Renovation | Nov 8, 2022
Renovation work outpaces new construction for first time in two decades
Renovations of older buildings in U.S. cities recently hit a record high as reflected in architecture firm billings, according to the American Institute of Architects (AIA).
Market Data | Nov 3, 2022
Building material prices have become the calm in America’s economic storm
Linesight’s latest quarterly report predicts stability (mostly) through the first half of 2023
Building Team | Nov 1, 2022
Nonresidential construction spending increases slightly in September, says ABC
National nonresidential construction spending was up by 0.5% in September, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of data published today by the U.S. Census Bureau.
Hotel Facilities | Oct 31, 2022
These three hoteliers make up two-thirds of all new hotel development in the U.S.
With a combined 3,523 projects and 400,490 rooms in the pipeline, Marriott, Hilton, and InterContinental dominate the U.S. hotel construction sector.
Codes and Standards | Oct 26, 2022
‘Landmark study’ offers key recommendations for design-build delivery
The ACEC Research Institute and the University of Colorado Boulder released what the White House called a “landmark study” on the design-build delivery method.
