Construction Cost Update Highlights
CoreLogic® extensively monitors the pricing trends surrounding construction materials and labor for the building industry. We do this to provide insight into the construction cost fluctuations that affect underwriting.
We release monthly construction cost bulletins to provide timely insight into the quickly changing market and ensure that our insights into the construction industry are relevant.
In the coming months, monthly cost updates will be available on latest version of CoreLogic Underwriting | Residential Valuation, formerly known as RCT Express® and CoreLogic Underwriting | Commercial Valuation, formerly known as Commercial Express®.
Please get in touch with your CoreLogic representative if you have any questions. You can also view our Construction Database Pricing Methodology white paper to gain additional insight into how we populate cost values.
Report Highlights:
- The national average for material costs in the U.S. has been stagnant 0.0% over the past quarter and decreased by -1.6% over the past 12 months.
- The national average for material costs in Canada increased by 0.7% over the past quarter and increased by 0.8% over the past 12 months.
- The national average for labor costs in the U.S. increased by 1.3% over the past quarter and increased by 3.1% over the past 12 months.
- The national average for labor costs in Canada increased 0.9% over the past quarter and increased by 1.2% over the past 12 months.
Data in these charts represent changes in construction costs over the preceding month, quarter (three months), and year (12 months) and are a comparison of the following data deliveries.
Month: February 2024 data to March 2024 data
Quarter: December 2023 data to March 2024 data
Year: March 2023 data to March 2024 data
| United States | Canada | |||||
| Month | Quarter | Year | Month | Quarter | Year | |
| Aluminum Conduit | 0.40% | 0.80% | 4.30% | 0.60% | 1.20% | 6.20% |
| Asphalt Shingles | 0.30% | 0.80% | 2.90% | 0.30% | 1.30% | 7.00% |
| Concrete Block | 0.50% | 0.70% | 5.90% | 0.60% | 1.80% | 7.10% |
| Drywall | -0.30% | -0.50% | 2.50% | 0.00% | 0.30% | 3.80% |
| Felt Paper | 0.40% | 1.00% | 5.10% | 0.40% | 1.00% | 5.20% |
| Galvanized Pipe | -0.90% | -1.20% | -3.90% | 0.10% | 0.50% | 1.20% |
| Lumber | -0.90% | -1.50% | -19.60% | -0.80% | -1.30% | -22.90% |
| Plywood | 0.60% | 1.90% | -16.50% | -0.30% | 0.10% | -11.90% |
| Ready Mix | 0.50% | 0.80% | 8.50% | -0.10% | 0.10% | 2.50% |
| Rebar | 0.30% | 1.10% | 5.40% | 0.80% | 1.80% | 5.20% |
| Steel Deck | 1.10% | 2.20% | 11.60% | 1.10% | 3.00% | 13.30% |
| Steel Stud | 0.40% | 1.00% | 5.00% | 0.50% | 1.40% | 7.20% |
| Structural Steel | -0.10% | 0.90% | 6.30% | 0.50% | 1.90% | 11.10% |
| 1/2″ Copper Pipe | -1.00% | -0.80% | 7.20% | -0.60% | -0.80% | 3.10% |
| United States | Canada | |||||
| Month | Quarter | Year | Month | Quarter | Year | |
| Material National Average | -0.20% | 0.00% | -1.60% | 0.20% | 0.70% | 0.80% |
| Labor National Average | 0.50% | 1.30% | 3.10% | 0.10% | 0.90% | 1.20% |
Underwriting National Average
The Underwriting National Average reflects the change in overall building costs.
| Residential Valuation (RCT) | Commercial | Agricultural | |||||||
| Month | Quarter | Year | Month | Quarter | Year | Month | Quarter | Year | |
| United States | 1.05% | 3.79% | 6.34% | 0.07% | 0.50% | 0.91% | 0.26% | 0.76% | 2.31% |
| Canada | 0.14% | 1.60% | 3.71% | -0.03% | 0.17% | 0.30% | 0.12% | 0.33% | 1.56% |
United States Underwriting Variances by State
| Residential Valuation (RCT) | Commercial | Agricultural | |||||||
| State | Month | Quarter | Year | Month | Quarter | Year | Month | Quarter | Year |
| Alabama | 1.43% | 4.79% | 6.68% | 0.17% | 1.09% | 1.46% | 0.38% | 1.42% | 2.97% |
| Alaska | 1.09% | 4.11% | 7.83% | 0.05% | 0.83% | 2.40% | 0.35% | 1.37% | 3.30% |
| Arizona | 1.02% | 4.28% | 6.16% | -0.01% | 0.76% | 1.00% | 0.10% | 1.33% | 3.37% |
| Arkansas | 0.96% | 3.84% | 6.29% | -0.26% | 0.13% | 0.86% | -0.05% | 0.40% | 1.91% |
| California | 0.04% | 2.17% | 4.60% | -0.15% | 0.22% | 1.29% | 0.39% | 0.81% | 2.78% |
| Colorado | 1.10% | 3.86% | 5.75% | 0.35% | 0.72% | 0.86% | 0.41% | 0.70% | 1.40% |
| Connecticut | 1.17% | 4.50% | 7.14% | -0.11% | 0.60% | 0.20% | 0.48% | 1.51% | 1.97% |
| Delaware | 1.29% | 3.92% | 7.28% | 0.07% | -0.19% | 1.20% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 2.11% |
| District of Columbia | 0.98% | 3.77% | 5.30% | 0.34% | 0.39% | 0.09% | 0.00% | 0.30% | 1.30% |
| Florida | 1.27% | 4.47% | 6.84% | -0.07% | 0.54% | 1.31% | 0.02% | 0.60% | 3.12% |
| Georgia | 1.44% | 4.40% | 6.29% | 0.04% | 0.51% | 0.54% | 0.29% | 0.91% | 2.94% |
| Hawaii | 0.98% | 3.48% | 8.05% | 0.07% | 0.34% | 4.37% | 0.00% | 0.40% | 4.86% |
| Idaho | 1.10% | 3.75% | 5.07% | 0.01% | 0.64% | -0.16% | 0.54% | 1.05% | 0.64% |
| Illinois | 1.05% | 4.08% | 7.29% | -0.01% | 0.28% | 1.50% | 0.12% | 0.56% | 2.56% |
| Indiana | 1.31% | 4.24% | 6.94% | 0.17% | 0.70% | 1.51% | 0.42% | 1.06% | 3.41% |
| Iowa | 1.12% | 3.78% | 6.21% | 0.06% | 0.27% | -0.02% | 0.33% | 0.66% | 1.64% |
| Kansas | 0.98% | 3.62% | 6.59% | -0.36% | -0.18% | 0.76% | 0.10% | 0.25% | 2.15% |
| Kentucky | 1.24% | 4.44% | 6.40% | 0.07% | 0.61% | 0.79% | 0.03% | 0.81% | 2.39% |
| Louisiana | 1.41% | 3.82% | 6.51% | 0.21% | 0.46% | 1.29% | 0.41% | 0.52% | 2.60% |
| Maine | 1.15% | 3.72% | 5.20% | 0.30% | 0.46% | 0.26% | 0.70% | 0.96% | 1.57% |
| Maryland | 1.40% | 4.03% | 6.43% | 0.41% | 0.54% | 0.37% | 0.74% | 0.88% | 1.12% |
| Massachusetts | 1.00% | 4.02% | 6.59% | 0.08% | 0.03% | 0.96% | 0.00% | -0.22% | 2.07% |
| Michigan | 1.04% | 3.81% | 6.18% | 0.02% | 0.23% | 0.26% | 0.16% | 0.34% | 1.30% |
| Minnesota | 0.94% | 3.92% | 6.59% | -0.03% | 0.20% | 0.55% | -0.06% | 0.35% | 2.19% |
| Mississippi | 1.62% | 4.38% | 6.52% | 0.30% | 0.86% | 1.48% | 0.57% | 1.51% | 3.24% |
| Missouri | 1.01% | 3.83% | 6.34% | -0.06% | 0.24% | 0.74% | 0.03% | 0.20% | 1.70% |
| Montana | 1.45% | 4.41% | 6.59% | 0.13% | 0.73% | 1.26% | 0.12% | 0.70% | 1.90% |
| Nebraska | 1.15% | 4.19% | 6.42% | 0.09% | 0.81% | 1.76% | 0.18% | 0.88% | 3.45% |
| Nevada | 1.11% | 4.44% | 7.33% | -0.07% | 0.57% | 1.36% | 0.29% | 1.20% | 2.95% |
| New Hampshire | 0.99% | 3.79% | 5.83% | -0.24% | -0.14% | -0.19% | 0.10% | 0.45% | 1.36% |
| New Jersey | 1.55% | 4.29% | 7.64% | 0.55% | 0.69% | 1.46% | 0.94% | 0.89% | 2.65% |
| New Mexico | 1.10% | 3.64% | 5.48% | 0.09% | 0.57% | 0.46% | 0.32% | 0.80% | 2.36% |
| New York | 1.13% | 3.95% | 7.26% | -0.10% | 0.36% | 1.70% | 0.00% | 0.37% | 2.49% |
| North Carolina | 1.49% | 4.28% | 6.03% | 0.35% | 0.96% | 0.67% | 0.30% | 1.15% | 2.89% |
| North Dakota | 1.13% | 3.94% | 5.74% | 0.16% | 0.58% | 0.50% | 0.20% | 0.70% | 1.66% |
| Ohio | 1.04% | 4.04% | 6.44% | -0.06% | 0.44% | 0.58% | 0.11% | 0.82% | 2.50% |
| Oklahoma | 0.88% | 3.62% | 6.62% | -0.14% | 0.45% | 1.54% | 0.07% | 0.86% | 3.24% |
| Oregon | 1.04% | 4.19% | 7.00% | -0.08% | 0.33% | 1.05% | 0.15% | 0.35% | 1.92% |
| Pennsylvania | 1.13% | 3.96% | 6.33% | 0.15% | 0.45% | 0.61% | 0.13% | 0.81% | 2.12% |
| Rhode Island | 1.00% | 4.15% | 6.34% | 0.10% | 0.55% | 0.57% | 0.00% | 1.00% | 1.60% |
| South Carolina | 1.32% | 4.15% | 5.45% | 0.16% | 0.52% | -0.01% | 0.32% | 0.73% | 1.26% |
| South Dakota | 1.30% | 4.56% | 6.24% | 0.19% | 1.24% | 1.59% | 0.31% | 0.99% | 2.38% |
| Tennessee | 1.49% | 4.40% | 6.18% | 0.42% | 0.73% | 0.34% | 0.56% | 0.92% | 1.94% |
| Texas | 1.36% | 4.12% | 6.20% | 0.15% | 0.50% | 0.38% | 0.34% | 0.67% | 1.69% |
| Utah | 1.14% | 3.62% | 4.76% | 0.47% | 0.17% | -0.90% | 0.50% | 0.70% | 0.30% |
| Vermont | 0.90% | 3.37% | 5.65% | -0.30% | -0.22% | -0.81% | 0.70% | 0.70% | 0.09% |
| Virginia | 1.22% | 4.14% | 5.74% | 0.28% | 1.04% | 0.37% | 0.47% | 1.11% | 1.19% |
| Washington | 0.99% | 4.07% | 6.76% | 0.09% | 0.64% | 1.10% | 0.00% | 0.45% | 1.45% |
| West Virginia | 1.04% | 3.72% | 6.20% | 0.02% | 0.16% | 1.51% | 0.17% | 0.37% | 3.02% |
| Wisconsin | 0.91% | 3.85% | 7.21% | -0.09% | 0.57% | 1.53% | -0.03% | 0.49% | 2.72% |
| Wyoming | 1.33% | 3.71% | 5.17% | 0.41% | 0.72% | 0.01% | 1.16% | 1.58% | 2.08% |
March 2024 United States
Residential Underwriting Variances
March 2024 United States
Commercial Underwriting Variances
March 2024 United States
Agricultural Underwriting Variances
Canada Underwriting Variances by Province
| Residential Valuation (RCT) | Commercial | Agricultural | |||||||
| Province | Month | Quarter | Year | Month | Quarter | Year | Month | Quarter | Year |
| Alberta | 0.14% | 1.83% | 3.94% | 0.00% | 0.27% | 0.27% | 0.00% | 0.14% | 1.21% |
| British Columbia | 0.09% | 1.42% | 3.56% | -0.29% | -0.08% | 0.95% | 0.24% | 0.62% | 3.13% |
| Manitoba | -0.02% | 1.10% | 2.54% | 0.37% | 0.13% | 0.10% | 0.21% | 0.06% | 2.17% |
| New Brunswick | 0.06% | 1.81% | 3.87% | -0.06% | 0.66% | 0.39% | 0.15% | 0.63% | 1.00% |
| Newfoundland & Labrador | 1.16% | 2.00% | 6.61% | 0.46% | 0.18% | 1.77% | -0.19% | -0.44% | 1.25% |
| Northwest Territories | 0.08% | 1.34% | 3.83% | -0.04% | 0.41% | 0.04% | -0.10% | 0.50% | 1.50% |
| Nova Scotia | 0.14% | 1.13% | 3.75% | 0.18% | -0.05% | 0.59% | 0.27% | 0.07% | 1.53% |
| Nunavut | 0.04% | 1.47% | 3.35% | -0.04% | 0.41% | 0.04% | -0.10% | 0.50% | 1.50% |
| Ontario | 0.12% | 1.83% | 3.57% | 0.01% | 0.32% | -0.08% | 0.04% | 0.38% | 1.06% |
| Prince Edward Island | 0.14% | 1.89% | 3.38% | -0.04% | 0.41% | 0.04% | -0.10% | 0.50% | 1.50% |
| Quebec | 0.33% | 1.67% | 3.81% | -0.15% | 0.06% | 0.37% | 0.11% | 0.42% | 2.15% |
| Saskatchewan | -0.01% | 1.13% | 2.94% | -0.24% | -0.35% | 0.02% | 0.36% | 0.23% | 0.92% |
| Yukon | 0.06% | 1.30% | 4.18% | -0.04% | 0.41% | 0.04% | -0.10% | 0.50% | 1.50% |
March 2024 Canada
Residential Underwriting Variances
March 2024 Canada
Commercial Underwriting Variances
March 2024 Canada
Agricultural Underwriting Variances
What’s New
Note: CoreLogic recommends a full program installation whenever possible to ensure that companies are making decisions and forming plans based on the latest data and are benefiting from the most recent program enhancements.
Cost Data Changes: CoreLogic® Underwriting Residential Valuation (Formerly RCT Express®)
- The March 2024 cost data update reflects changes in reconstruction costs for labor and material. Standardized costs in this release reflect localized, updated costs representing the impact of emerging markets and economic trends on construction costs.
- 2024 Variable Soft Costs Updates for All Customers
- The CoreLogic team of Construction Estimators and Data Product Managers regularly and independently research, collect, analyze, and curate thousands of construction material costs and industry trends to produce and maintain a comprehensive construction cost database. CoreLogic combines key elements of material, labor, equipment, and other factors to meet the specific valuation needs of CoreLogic underwriting solutions, including the RCT (Residential Valuation) platform. As part of CoreLogic’s ongoing review of market dynamics, the team reviews the base factors used within the CoreLogic valuation methodology. CoreLogic is therefore notifying all our RCT (Residential Valuation) customers of upcoming changes to some of the underlying factors used within our RCT program. These changes are designed to reflect real world dynamics in construction costs and are based on our industry-leading research, including interviews with various experts in the construction industry as well as data collected throughout North America.
- With our goal of providing more accurate reconstruction costs reflecting the current state of the property construction industry, CoreLogic has been consistently monitoring construction costs, associated economic indicators and overall market data. Through our research and ongoing validation conversations with clients, CoreLogic is proceeding with adjustments to certain markets to account for increasing costs of doing business, including oversight expenses at the general contractor level. To continue to refine the accuracy of our reconstruction cost valuations, CoreLogic plans to make incremental cost increases throughout 2024 to reflect the most current construction market dynamics.
- The primary focus of these incremental cost increases will center around variable soft costs. In general, soft costs are all necessary costs for a construction project not attributed to labor, materials, and equipment. Examples are overhead and profit markups, professional fees associated with architects and interior designers, preconstruction costs like planning and permitting, and job site costs like temporary fencing and portable restrooms. Historically these costs have been relatively static but since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, these costs have accelerated. Higher than average inflation rates starting in 2021 have also served to magnify these cost increases, which are now being fully reflected in the overall cost of construction.
- The CoreLogic Pricing Analysis and Delivery team will be implementing these increases in the coming 12-18 months, and it is anticipated that customers may see up to a 12% increase in reconstruction cost valuation over that timeframe. The actual percentage increase will vary by property depending on the size of the finished living area, location of the property, and other factors. Cost increases will be more prominent in homes with under 2,600 square feet of finished living area li During this time, CoreLogic will continue to monitor the market closely and will reassess increases based on individual market dynamics and continuous research.
- To help our clients navigate these changes and better understand the impact, average variance values for each state for three different sized homes (1500sf, 2400sf, and 3300sf) will be available upon request. These variances will include monthly, quarterly, and yearly variances for each data delivery throughout 2024. In addition, CoreLogic recommends that all customers consider re-valuing existing policies through the Residential Valuation platform upon renewal beginning in the second half of 2024. Should you have any questions regarding this change, please contact your account manager for additional details or submit a Request for Information.
Non-Cost Data Changes: CoreLogic® Underwriting Residential Valuation (Formerly RCT Express®)
- There are no non-cost data changes for March 2024.
Cost Data Changes: CoreLogic® Underwriting Commercial Valuation (Formerly Commercial Express®)
- The March 2024 cost data update reflects reconstruction cost changes in both labor and material. Standardized costs in this release reflect localized, updated costs representing the impact of emerging markets and economic trends on construction costs.
Non-Cost Data Changes: CoreLogic® Underwriting Commercial Valuation (Formerly Commercial Express®)
- There are no non-cost data changes for March 2024.
About CoreLogic Data Research
CoreLogic develops this report using up-to-date materials and labor costs. CoreLogic’s team of analysts continuously researches hard costs such as labor, material, and equipment, including markups. CoreLogic updates its database every month accordingly.
Our research also covers soft costs such as taxes and fringe benefits for reconstruction work performed as part of the insurance industry. CoreLogic monitors demographics and econometric statistics, government indicators, and localization requirements, including market trends from thousands of unique economies throughout the United States and Canada.
Other factors in our findings process include the following:
- Wage rates for more than 85 union and non-union trades
- Over 100,000 construction data points
- Productivity rates and crew sizes
- Building code requirements and localized cost variables
Additionally, we validate cost data by analyzing field inspection records, contractor estimates, phone surveys, and both partial and complete loss claim information.
A more detailed methodology explanation can be found in our white paper, Component-Based Estimating for Determining Reconstruction Costs.
NOTE: The cost information in this bulletin is intended to give you a general sense of reconstruction cost trends in North America. You should not advocate using these factors when adjusting renewal values for specific locations or across your book of business. Please note that the building material and labor cost trends presented in this bulletin are broad averages derived from our research of construction trades and building materials.