Builders face a shortage of a variety of materials needed to build homes, such as wood panels, ceiling joists, and pipes. They are looking for substitutes to meet building schedules, but the process is also increasing their costs.

Supply shortages have become a common story in the homebuilding industry over the past year. More than 90% of builders say they have faced a shortage of appliances, framing lumber, plywood, and oriented strand board (a type of engineered wood), according to a survey from the National Association of Home Builders conducted in May. Eighty-seven percent of builders also cited shortages of windows and doors.

A winter storm in Texas earlier this year diminished supplies for several building materials. That prompted Straub Construction in Shawnee, Kan., to switch to different insulation materials for its projects after that storm made it difficult to get some types of petroleum-derived roof insulation boards. But that switch has added about $20,000 to the costs for the construction of two apartment building projects they’re building. The alternative by not switching was to wait six to nine months for the boards.

“I’ve been in the industry for 30 years and never seen anything like this,” Parker Young, president of Straub Construction, told The Wall Street Journal.

Builders are showing more willingness to pay for the substituted materials in order to try to avoid construction delays. They fear that not doing so could cost them some lost sales.

Demand for new homes has surged. Shortages of materials first started when the pandemic began and some factories temporarily shut down. Factories have had a tough time catching up since then due to the high demand, staffing shortages, and other challenges.

The uncertainty of the availability of materials is challenging builders to price out homes. “We’re just concerned that this is not going to get any better right now,” Tony Rader, vice president of National Roofing Partners in Coppell, Texas, told The Wall Street Journal.

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