If you’re considering a home renovation, you might have heard that sky-high building costs are having a dampening effect on the industry, and tradesmen are reporting a reduction in job bookings. When building costs rocket, margins thin for the professionals doing the work, and customers are less inclined to book jobs, especially when the broader economy’s looking shaky. It’s a lose-lose that tends to cause broader concern for policymakers, as the UK’s building industry tends to be a good indicator of customer sentiment and optimism.
How bad is the problem?
Since January 2020, the cost of construction materials has rocketed by 37% on average. At the same time, many would-be property flippers have moved out of the market, as the government levied stamp duty increases. As a result, this aspect of the property market is operating at levels not seen since 2013.
What homeowners are thinking
Homeowners have always had to weigh up the whole ‘move or improve’ question, but planning applications for home extensions from companies such as https://precisionbuildersltd.co.uk/services/home-extensions are at an all-time low as the economy stutters. Homeowners are weighing up all kinds of concerns about rising costs in general, including inflation for food, and wondering whether it’s worth simply pausing on home extensions for a while, or cancelling them entirely.
The challenge for Rachel Reeves
In the next budget, everyone will be looking to Rachel Reeves to provide some certainty for the economy at a time when the cost of living – and the cost of doing business – has never felt higher.
