Construction material costs continued climbing in April, extending a sharp escalation that contractors and developers have tracked since the start of 2026.
- Construction input prices rose 1.7% month over month and 6.2% year to date.
- Construction input prices increased more during the first four months of 2026 than they did during the prior three years combined.
- Materials prices were up 7% year-over-year
- Nonresidential construction input costs rose 7.4% year-over-year
| Commodity | 1 Month Price Change% | 12 Month Price Change% | Pre-covid Change% |
| Softwood lumber | 5.5 | 0.9 | 26.8 |
| Hardwood lumber | 0.5 | 3.6 | 42.1 |
| General millworks | 0.3 | 2.2 | 35.2 |
| Soft plywood products | 2.5 | (0.1) | 60.6 |
| Hot rolled steel bars, plates and structural shapes | 4.4 | 22.1 | 65.0 |
| Copper wire and cable | (1.3) | 11.8 | 78.0 |
| Builder’s hardware | (0.0) | 8.3 | 38.5 |
| Plumbing fixtures and fittings | 0.0 | 9.0 | 35.0 |
| Furnaces and heaters | 0.2 | 6.2 | 51.5 |
| Sheet metal products | 0.8 | 5.8 | 60.3 |
| Nails | 6.9 | 7.3 | 29.6 |
| Major appliances | (0.1) | 2.3 | 24.3 |
| Flat glass | 1.1 | 5.7 | 41.9 |
| Ready mix concrete | 0.4 | 1.7 | 39.6 |
| Asphalt roofing and siding | 0.3 | 0.7 | 40.8 |
| Gypsum products | 0.2 | (1.0) | 48.6 |
| Mineral wool insulation | (0.6) | (2.3) | 47.8 |
| CPI-U (unadjusted April) | 0.9 | 3.8 | 29.1 |
Source: BisNow
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