South Florida’s residential building contracts spike through June

South Florida Business Journal by Oscar Pedro Musibay, Reporter

Date: Tuesday, July 31, 2012, 3:00pm EDT

South Florida generated $423 million in construction contracts in June. Unfortunately, a sharp drop in production in the commercial sector pushed the overall total down 2 percent from a year ago.

But when the entire year is factored in, South Florida’s construction industry is going gangbusters. The region generated $2.31 billion in new contracts for the year so far – up 47 percent from the same time last year, according to McGraw-Hill Construction’s report.

Non-residential – including commercial, manufacturing, religious and hotel – generated $231.7 million in future contracts, a 22 percent decrease from June 2011. Residential projects generated $192 million in new contracts, up 43 percent from the same time last year.

The data is consistent with the Business Journal’s reporting, which indicates that there are 50 new condominium towers proposed east of Interstate 95 in the tri-county area.

For the year-to-date, the non-residential sector has generated $1.2 billion in deals, up 19 percent from June 2011. Activity in the residential sector has spiked, with $1.14 billion in contracts signed, an increase of 94 percent, according to McGraw-Hill Construction’s report.