It’s that time of the year again to start planning for 2018, and, to help with that, we are releasing our 2018 construction forecast report covering the United States and Canada.
According to our consensus forecast, by the end of this year, 2017 construction activity in the United States will likely increase 4% in nominal dollars. Residential is forecasted to have the most growth with 6%, while non-residential should grow 2%, and non-building increase 4%.
For 2018 construction, we predict slightly stronger growth of 5% overall. Residential should be again 6%, sustained by 9% growth in Single-family. Non-residential should have strong Institutional growth with education and public buildings growing 6%. Commercial is expected to grow 2% with office leading at 6%. Overall, non-residential is predicted to grow 4%. Non-building is also forecasted for 4% growth based on an uptick of 6% in Roads and Bridges.
Geographically in 2018, the South and the West will likely be the key regions of growth with Texas, Nevada, and New Mexico leading that growth. On top of that, 36 of the top 50 MSAs will experience expansion in 2018. The three largest MSAs, in terms of construction starts spend, are forecasted as follows: New York City (-2%), Dallas (10%), and Houston (14%).
Overall construction costs are forecasted for ongoing increase in 2018 in the 2-3% range, led by 3-4% higher construction labor costs.
Canadian construction will likely grow 4% in 2018, after a 1% decline in 2017. Growth in 2018 will be fueled by a rebound in non-building construction.
Overall, the perspective for 2018 is for continued growth after a good 2017.
For more details download our 2018 U.S. construction forecast report.
The interactive dashboard below lets you engage with the construction growth forecast by segment, region, state and MSA, so you can see which areas are strong, healthy, stable or declining.
(Problems viewing dashboard? If you are unable to visualize all of the features in the above dashboard, including options to download, select View from your web browser's main menu, and then zoom in or out until all features are visible.)
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Although the contents contained herein are provided under the highest professional standards in the generation of these forecasts, CRH. and its Affiliates do not guarantee the accuracy or completeness of any information contained herein. CRH and its Affiliates specifically disclaim all warranties, expressed or implied, with respect to the use of this information or any results with respect thereto. In addition, the information contained herein shall in no way be construed to constitute a recommendation by CRH with respect to the purchase or sale of any investment, security or its derivatives or any other property or asset.
