August was another month of price stabilization in the construction products market – according to the latest report by the PSB Trade Group. Experts from RynekPierwotny.pl point out that conditions for starting construction are still favorable, although dark clouds have appeared on the horizon.
– We can see that many investors who are building their homes individually are trying to take advantage of this moment. Statistics from GUS indicate a significant revival in single-family construction, despite the still low access to loans – says Marek Wielgo, an expert from RynekPierwotny.pl.
During the first eight months of this year, individual investors started the construction of almost 54.4 thousand housing units (mainly single-family homes). This means an increase of over 11% compared to the same period last year. However, remember that this rebound is largely the effect of a low base. Last year we had a slump in single-family construction. The uncertainty caused by the war in Ukraine, expensive loans, and fear of rising building material prices did not favor the start of construction.
– Those planning to build a single-family home still had fresh in their minds the price horror experienced by investors who undertook to build houses on the wave of post-Covid euphoria. However, in the second half of last year, the situation of investors has definitely improved. First of all, prices for many building materials fell for the first time in a few years. Importantly, this trend has also continued this year – comments the expert from RynekPierwotny.pl.
The PSB Trade Group, which monitors the market for products used primarily in single-family construction, has announced that in August their average price calculated for 20 product groups was 0.4% lower than in the same period last year. Decreases occurred in 13 categories. In further groups, the decreases were as follows: tools, garden, hobby, and tiles, bathrooms, kitchens (-2%), waterproof insulations (-3%), lighting, electricity, finishing, roofs, gutters, and dry construction (each -4%).
On the other hand, prices increased over 12 months in seven product groups: OSB boards, wood (+10%), cement, lime (+4%), carpentry and walls, chimneys (each +3%), paints, varnishes and surroundings of the house (each +1%) as well as automotive (+0.1%).
Moreover, data from the PSB Trade Group show that August was a period of price stabilization. The average price calculated for 20 product groups was 0.2% lower than in July. Although prices increased in six groups of goods (walls, chimneys, automotive, surroundings of the house, finishes, tiles, bathrooms, kitchens and tools), the increases did not exceed 1%.
The level of July was maintained by the prices of construction chemicals, thermal insulation, and decorations. However, prices fell in seven groups. Reductions of up to 1% covered carpentry, roofs, gutters, paints, varnishes, cement, lime, installations, heating, equipment, appliances as well as garden, hobby. The biggest price drop occurred in the category: dry construction, waterproof insulation and OSB boards, wood (each -1) and lighting, electricity (-2%).
In this year, the supply of construction plots has increased. The Adradar real estate portal search engine reports that in August this year there were 246,000 plots on the market offer, i.e., more than 13% more than in the same period a year earlier.
On the other hand, there were concerns that some producers and traders would raise prices of building products on the wave of post-flood reconstruction and renovation of flooded houses and apartments. Theoretically, this risk is not large, because the flood affected only a fragment of the country. And even if some factories or construction wholesalers were flooded locally, this should not affect the entire market.
However, the expert from RynekPierwotny.pl admits that there is a high probability that in the coming months the pace of increase in construction costs will accelerate regardless of flood-related investments. Most likely, we will face a surge of investments co-financed by the European Union, among others as part of the National Recovery Plan. This, in turn, may mean an increase in prices of many construction materials.
Author: RynekPierwotny.pl
Source: https://managerplus.pl/sierpien-przynosi-stabilizacje-cen-na-rynku-materialow-budowlanych-48299
