Commercial construction costs have stabilized. But they don’t appear ready to fall by a significant amount anytime soon. That’s true both across the country and in the Milwaukee market.
In its fourth quarter 2024 Construction Cost Index, Mortenson reported that nonresidential construction costs tracked by the Mortenson Quarterly Cost Index rose 0.33% in the fourth quarter of 2024 and 1.97% during all of last year.
In Milwaukee, nonresidential construction costs fell in the fourth quarter, dropping by 0.13% when compared to costs in the third quarter. That makes this market a rarity: Milwaukee and Denver were the only Mortenson regional offices that reported cost decreases in the fourth quarter of last year.
According to Mortenson, construction material costs softened in the fourth quarter of last year, falling 0.2% in the nation. For the entire year of 2024, these costs dropped by 0.8%.
Energy and infrastructure categories, though, continued to see significant cost increases. Mortenson reported that the cost of high-voltage circuit breakers rose 12% nationally in the fourth quarter while the cost of power conversion systems jumped by 10%.
While the Milwaukee market saw construction costs fall in the fourth quarter, these costs rose for the entire year of 2024. The Mortenson Cost Index increased 3% in the Milwaukee market in 2024 when compared to the previous year.
Mortenson reported that building construction employment in the Milwaukee metropolitan area averaged 37,000 workers in 2024, an increase of 2% when compared to 2023’s average employment. Mortenson also said that labor shortages remain a persistent challenge for the commercial construction industry.
