Rising construction costs have slowed for the first time in two years as a drop in new home builds eases demand for materials and labour.
The cost of building a home or renovating recorded its lowest average increase last month since September 2020, with potential knock-on effects for the housing market and inflation.
The national quarterly average growth rate eased to 0.7 percent in June, down from 0.9 percent in May, according to property data giant CoreLogic.
It follows a growth peak of 4.7 percent in September 2022, about which time a number of major home builders collapsed under the strain of rising material costs, labour shortages and other COVID-19 pandemic-related pressures….