US Census data indicates a drop in total construction spending for the month of January 2017. A 1% fall from the figure for the preceding December nonetheless represents an increase of 3% as compared to the preceding January of 2016.
Also hidden in the downtick was a year-over-year rise in nonresidential construction. That figure rose 1.5% year-over-year even as January compared to December showed a 1.9% drop.
Are Massive Gains In New Office Construction Over?
Annual census data showed an eye-popping annual increase in new office projects of 28.8% annually, which was the largest increase for any type of property tracked. Looking solely at office construction from December-January shows a fall of 1.7%, suggesting either a reversal of a trend or an end-of-year slowdown in the sector generally.
How Can I Get US Census Data On Construction?
The US Census releases data on construction regularly and can be found at Census.gov. Construction spending numbers are sourced from the Census’s VIP Survey, aka the Value Of Construction Put In Place survey, which provides monthly estimates of the total value of construction work in the US. Included in the survey are estimates of architectural and engineering work, labor, materials, taxes, interests and overhead costs.
This article appeared in the in the Commercial Search blog HERE.