Turner Construction: Building Construction Costs Decline in Second Quarter 2009
June 2009
Non-residential building construction costs in the United States decreased 3.35 percent from the first quarter of 2009 and have decreased 8.92 percent from a peak in the second quarter of 2008, according to the Second Quarter 2009 Turner Building Cost Index.
The Turner Building Cost Index number for the second quarter of 2009 is 837. In the first quarter it was 866.
“An overall reduction in construction starts and increased competition has caused construction costs in the commercial and institutional markets to decline,” says Karl Almstead, Turner Construction Company vice president. “Positive signs in the economy, including an upturn in the Architecture Billing Index (ABI) and an anticipated increase in federal public sector spending, are signs of optimism in the construction industry.”
Decreasing demand has led to continued decreases in commodity and material prices, inventories and plant utilization rates, says Almstead.
The Cost Index is determined by several factors considered on a nationwide basis, including labor rates and productivity, material prices and the competitive condition of the marketplace.
