Friday Fun Facts – 3-D Printed Homes

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Single-family house 3d printing concept. Symbolic house building using modern technologies. 3d illustration.

Last week, over 300 people gathered in Greeley, Colorado, to witness the groundbreaking of the largest Habitat for Humanity project in the state, which will feature 3D-printed homes. Alquist 3D, a concrete printing company, showcased its technology, using a robotic arm to layer concrete for walls instead of traditional materials like lumber.

Alquist, founded by Zachary Mannheimer, relocated its headquarters to Greeley due to local partnerships, including with Habitat for Humanity and Aims Community College. The company aims to make 3D-printed homes cheaper and more disaster-resistant than traditional houses. Currently, Alquist is working to match the cost of lumber-built homes but anticipates that large-scale production could reduce costs by 20-30%.

The Hope Springs project will consist of 174 Habitat homes and 320 apartments. Alquist’s initial task is to build two duplex homes, while 12 lumber-built homes will begin construction soon. Habitat’s local CEO, Cheri Witt-Brown, supports the technology but seeks to ensure it meets budget and family preferences before committing to further expansion.

Hope Springs will feature various community amenities and could serve as a model for addressing Colorado’s housing crisis. The project aims to combine nonprofit, private, and public efforts to create affordable housing options.

 

Source:  Colorado Public Radio

 

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Friday Fun Facts – 3-D Printed Homes

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Single-family house 3d printing concept. Symbolic house building using modern technologies. 3d illustration.

Last week, over 300 people gathered in Greeley, Colorado, to witness the groundbreaking of the largest Habitat for Humanity project in the state, which will feature 3D-printed homes. Alquist 3D, a concrete printing company, showcased its technology, using a robotic arm to layer concrete for walls instead of traditional materials like lumber.

Alquist, founded by Zachary Mannheimer, relocated its headquarters to Greeley due to local partnerships, including with Habitat for Humanity and Aims Community College. The company aims to make 3D-printed homes cheaper and more disaster-resistant than traditional houses. Currently, Alquist is working to match the cost of lumber-built homes but anticipates that large-scale production could reduce costs by 20-30%.

The Hope Springs project will consist of 174 Habitat homes and 320 apartments. Alquist’s initial task is to build two duplex homes, while 12 lumber-built homes will begin construction soon. Habitat’s local CEO, Cheri Witt-Brown, supports the technology but seeks to ensure it meets budget and family preferences before committing to further expansion.

Hope Springs will feature various community amenities and could serve as a model for addressing Colorado’s housing crisis. The project aims to combine nonprofit, private, and public efforts to create affordable housing options.

 

Source:  Colorado Public Radio

 

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Way Under

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The Nation’s real estate market is significantly under-supplied.According to the most recent research from Freddie Mac, the United States has a housing supply deficit of 3.8 million units.The available inventory today is lower than it has ever been in the last 40 years and is 3.5x lower than the peak of 2008.The reason why available inventory is so low, is the low amount of new home starts that have occurred over the last 15 years.Builders have faced many obstacles trying to keep up with housing demand including supply chain issues, labor supply, land availability, water availability, and stricter approval processes.Fewer new homes were built in the decade ending 2018 than any other decade since the 1960’s.The reality is, the obstacles builders face are unlikely to change significantly in the foreseeable future.Low inventory is likely to persist.An under-supplied market is a key reason leading economists do not expect home prices to crash even while the market cools off.

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Lumber Back Up

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The price of lumber has jumped back up again and is adding to the cost of new home construction.

Over the past four months, lumber prices have nearly tripled, causing the price of an average new single-family home to increase by more than $18,600.

According to Random Lengths, as of the end of December, the price of framing lumber topped $1,000 per thousand board feet — a 167% increase since late August.

This most recent lumber price upsurge is due to a number of factors, including:

  • Ongoing supply chain disruptions
  • A doubling of tariffs on Canadian lumber imports into the U.S. market that increased price volatility
  • An unusually strong summer wildfire season in the western United States and British Columbia

Predictions on what lumber prices will do during 2022 are mostly pointing to even higher costs for home builders and ultimately, new home buyers.

The post Lumber Back Up appeared first on Fort Collins Real Estate | Fort Collins Homes for Sale & Property Search.

Lumber Back Up

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The price of lumber has jumped back up again and is adding to the cost of new home construction.

Over the past four months, lumber prices have nearly tripled, causing the price of an average new single-family home to increase by more than $18,600.

According to Random Lengths, as of the end of December, the price of framing lumber topped $1,000 per thousand board feet — a 167% increase since late August.

This most recent lumber price upsurge is due to a number of factors, including:

  • Ongoing supply chain disruptions
  • A doubling of tariffs on Canadian lumber imports into the U.S. market that increased price volatility
  • An unusually strong summer wildfire season in the western United States and British Columbia

Predictions on what lumber prices will do during 2022 are mostly pointing to even higher costs for home builders and ultimately, new home buyers.

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Construction Openings

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It’s not just the availability of materials impacting home builders today, it’s also the availability of labor.

The market could use more inventory.  Home builders are trying to catch up.

You’ve likely read the stories about the cost and availability of materials making an impact on home builders’ ability to keep pace with demand.

It turns out they have another factor impacting them as well- labor.

There are more construction job openings than ever before in history.

This is according to a new report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

There are 410,000 job openings in the Construction Sector.

A year ago there were 253,000.

If you know of anyone looking for work, there is a good chance a home builder could use the help.

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Record Increase

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Home builders have experienced their largest-ever increase in building costs so far in 2021.

This is according to the latest Producer Price Index report.  

Year to date, building costs are up 14.5%.  This amount tops the previous record of 7.1% which occurred in 2008.

Specific materials which have seen significant increases include lumber, drywall and steel.

The price of steel has risen 117% this year.

These material cost increases combined with increases in items like building permits and tap fees are causing home builders to raise their sales prices.

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Lower Lumber

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Lumber prices are becoming more normal again.

After soaring this Spring to record levels, they have lowered back to near pre-pandemic levels.

The current price for 1000 board feet of lumber is $577.  This is 62% below the price this past May when it reached an all-time high of $1,515.

In the years leading up to the pandemic, prices tended to be between $350 and $500.

While this is great news for consumers and home builders, the prices aren’t drastically lower yet in the lumber aisle at your local bib-box hardware store.

This is because many retailers are still selling through their inventory of lumber which they purchased at higher prices.

However, for the long term, home buyers will benefit from the more normal lumber prices that now exist in the market.

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Construction Jobs

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When you see people working to build a new home or new commercial building, you may wonder how much money they earn.

Here is some interesting research from the Bureau of Labor Statistics which ranks the highest-paying construction jobs based on median annual income.

Who knew that elevator and escalator installers would be at the top?

  1. Elevator and Escalator Installer = $88,540
  2. Boilermaker = $65,360
  3. Building Inspector = $62,860 
  4. Electrician = $56,900
  5. Plumber = $56,330
  6. Ironworker = $53,210
  7. Sheetmetal Worker = $51,370
  8. Carpenter = $49,520
  9. Equipment Operator = $49,100

The post Construction Jobs appeared first on Fort Collins Real Estate | Fort Collins Homes for Sale & Property Search.

Construction Jobs

/in , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , /by

When you see people working to build a new home or new commercial building, you may wonder how much money they earn.

Here is some interesting research from the Bureau of Labor Statistics which ranks the highest-paying construction jobs based on median annual income.

Who knew that elevator and escalator installers would be at the top?

  1. Elevator and Escalator Installer = $88,540
  2. Boilermaker = $65,360
  3. Building Inspector = $62,860 
  4. Electrician = $56,900
  5. Plumber = $56,330
  6. Ironworker = $53,210
  7. Sheetmetal Worker = $51,370
  8. Carpenter = $49,520
  9. Equipment Operator = $49,100

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