According to the Society of Chartered Surveyors Ireland, the cost of rebuilding a house has increased by an average of 6% over the past 12 months.
The main reasons for the rise in cost are due to the following:
- Rising labour rates, due mainly to the shortage of construction workers available in the market.
- The impact of the new building regulations is pushing prices up across the board
- The cost associated with the removal and disposal of demolition waste is also a key factor in rising costs.
The construction sector is experiencing high levels of activity and this increase is having an inflationary effect on construction prices. There are simply not enough construction workers to meet demand and as a result wage costs are rising. More recently, changes to ventilation requirements for new builds came into effect this year and while they will help reduce heating costs in the long run, this has contributed to the rise in building costs. Thirdly, the costs of disposing of building waste have continued to rise – Mr Mahon said.