The housing market in Northwest Michigan is hot, hot, hot right now!
The pandemic fueled an increased interest in moving to more open spaces, and many are moving to the Traverse City area and choosing to build new.
The Home Builders Association says the housing market is tight, and the number of local contractors is limited. In some cases, local contractors are booked all the way through next year and beyond.
The trend comes as a result of this year’s quarantine and years of buildup. After the Great Recession in 2008, many builders left the area.
This year, many people started moving to the region from all over, seeking a lifestyle away from big cities in the wake of the pandemic.
It’s an interesting equation: housing is in short supply, building materials are getting pricier, and there’s not enough laborers, so the construction industry is stressed.
“They have to delay the work somewhere, and they’re all getting pressed by a lot of different people to do jobs for them. It’s all led to a serious shortage of labor and housing for the community,” said Bob O’Hara from the Home Builders Association. “We’re getting to the end of the building season and just about everyone is is talking about their projects for next year at this point.”
The Home Builders Association promotes a program to get more people to enter the building trades, for information on it, go to www.buildyourlife.net
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