Housing Costs To Jump?

Florida's housing market will feel the effect of the latest hurricane despite Katrina's mightiest blow landing two states away. Many local builders are concerned that the massive construction involved in rebuilding the city of New Orleans will cause increases in the costs of lumber and other supplies needed to build the new homes. These increases in prices caused by such a demand are sure to be felt even in Florida. "We still have shortages due to last year's hurricanes in Florida," Jerry Blumberg, co-owner of Gibraltar Homes, said Thursday.

Not only could the builders see an increased price due to high demand but many fear that because of the loss of rich resources in the New Orleans area we will see the prices jump simply due to availability. All of this concern builds when we add in the rising cost of fuel which will be needed to ship the materials to builders in Florida and across the country. Dave Wick, president of the Home Builder's Association of Manatee County, doesn't expect a large number of local workers to leave because of the amount of work readily available here. Instead, Wick predicts skyrocketing fuel costs combined with the inevitable hike in the price of building materials will drive home costs to new heights. "Is this going to help burst the bubble? We don't know," Wick said.