As you may have realized, there is a boom in new home building and new home sales! According to the Dallas Business Journal, Dallas-Fort Worth homebuilders set an all-time record for new home starts in the first quarter of this year, shooting up more than 40 percent in the first three months of 2021. Even though the construction times are longer in the new home building boom, there are plenty of homes being built and with a little patience, one can be your new home!
The surge of activity also pushed the annual start rate to a record level for DFW. For the four-quarter period from 2Q 2020 through 1Q 2021, builders started 52,448 homes, passing the previous record of 51,018 from 2Q 2006.
The surge of construction has also pushed the number of houses under construction to a new record level of 29,088 units.
January was an exceptionally strong month for new home sales. And despite a two-week pause in construction resulting from this February’s cold weather, builders were still able to push quarterly starts to a record level.
Management of the construction backlog and getting houses built has been a priority for DFW’s production builders, but the cycle times, the times it takes to get a house built has been extended several week.
The extended build times are a result of a shortage of subcontractors and trades as well as the construction supply chain being overwhelmed and builders reporting shortages of materials such as lumber, brick and radiant barrier.
The scarcity of materials has caused construction costs to climb sharply. In 2020, direct construction costs were up about 10 percent. This year’s prices are already up over 15 percent.
As a result of the cost inflation, builders are being careful about locking in prices on to-be-built units that cannot be started for several weeks. In many cases, houses released for sale are on allocation or are not available for sale until they are well into the construction process. Construction times are longer in the new home building boom in DFW, but, a newly built home could be in your future! Please contact Mindy Short, Goal Line Real Estate Team’s Buyer Specialist for showings of new builds in your area.
GoalLine Real Estate buyers’ specialist is our very own, Mindy Short. If you have questions about buying in this competitive market, please feel free to reach out to her at 214-674-8004 or at mindyshort@kw.com.
Beth Brake REALTOR®
Positively changing your life as you move forward to your dreams.
214-769-2947