South Florida construction starts surged in June, more than tripling the amount recorded in the same month of last year, according to a new report.
Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties’ total construction starts climbed 240 percent in June, year over year, reaching $1.9 billion, according to Dodge Data & Analytics, a Hamilton, New Jersey-based construction data analytics firm.
Residential construction starts rose 234 percent to $1.1 billion, while nonresidential construction starts jumped 245 percent to $795 million. By comparison, last June was shortly after the start of the pandemic.
Nonresidential construction includes office, retail, hotels, warehouses, manufacturing,
educational, healthcare, religious, government, recreational and other buildings. Residential construction includes single-family homes and multifamily housing, according to Dodge.
Year-to-date through June, total construction starts topped $6.4 billion, up 38 percent compared to the same period of last year. Residential starts reached nearly $4 billion, up 42 percent, and nonresidential starts surpassed $2.4 billion, up 33 percent.
In May, total construction starts rose 55 percent, year over year, to $901 million, Dodge reported. Residential starts were up 93 percent to $559 million, and nonresidential were up 17 percent to $342 million.
In April, South Florida residential construction starts increased, but commercial starts declined, according to Dodge. Residential starts were up 36 percent to $505 million. Nonresidential starts fell 11 percent to $295 million. Overall, total construction starts rose 14 percent in April to $800 million.
For March, Dodge reported the same trend, as residential construction starts swelled, but nonresidential starts dropped. Residential starts increased 40 percent in March, to $461 million. Commercial starts decreased by 2 percent to $306 million.
The continuing upward trend in residential construction starts reflects South Florida’s booming housing market. The luxury market is especially hot in light of high demand from out-of-state buyers.
Nationwide, the surge in demand has driven new home prices up by 12 percent since March 2020, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. During the same period, construction costs jumped as much as 30 percent, experts say. Supply chains have been disrupted by pandemic shutdowns, delaying completions and contributing to rising costs.