Customers looking at cheaper options for home improvements, price of lumber dropping

NORTH LIBERTY, Iowa (KCRG) – A supply chain issue during the COVID-19 pandemic led to high prices for building materials.

An area contractor said those high prices led some customers to look for different options for home repairs and improvements.

In the most extreme examples, people are choosing to wait months to start a project in hopes prices will drop, especially if the repairs are not urgent.

Other customers are looking for less expensive materials. Some are opting to only repair certain items rather than completely replace them.

”When faced with the option of a brand new shiny something or spiffing up the old one, the cost of materials sometimes drives that decision as well,” said Edward Gadelha, president of Ace Handyman Services of Cedar Rapids and Iowa City.

Ace Handyman of Cedar Rapids and Iowa City works with people on home repairs and upgrades.

Up to half the cost of projects can be from materials alone.

”If it’s not something urgent, we have seen people hold off and wait until prices come down a bit,” Gadelha said.

Supply chain issues during the pandemic drove the prices of building materials up.

”It has been slow to come back down. Until the beginning of this year, we didn’t really feel much relief,” Gadelha said.

That relief is here now for some items.

”I think some manufacturers are getting a little bit heavier in their stock so they’re coming down with their prices, which we’re really happy to see,” said Doug Christner of Ace Hardware in North Liberty.

A big one– the price of lumber.

”A 2×4, a very basic piece of wood, has started to come down to what I would call normal prices now after having been up about 25% earlier in the year. Drywall is another very common building material, and that one has stayed pretty flat throughout the year,” Gadelha said.

Other building materials are still on the pricier end.

”Concrete and those types of products took a lot longer to come down in price than some of the other more basic building blocks like lumber and drywall. That we’re still feeling a little bit today,” said Gadelha.

As well as high-end products.

” The finishes that are more expensive than average. I think that because of the uniqueness have the luxury of not having to follow the broader construction prices,” Gadelha said.

Gadelha says the best time to get started in home improvement projects is this fall.

Other items sold at the North Liberty Ace Hardware store have had prices lowered recently. That includes some power tools and gas outdoor grills.

link