I think rising material cost is a recurring theme for 2020 and beyond. Basically the increases the factories pass on is always a multiple of whatever the government claims the inflation rate is. How these suppliers have pricing control isn’t clear, I think the small installers just show up at the order desk and pay whatever the bill is. They don’t have another option to substitute because that would waste a lot of time. Rising costs for new building helps to support the value of older buildings because replacement cost is so much higher that an older property will look more attractive. That may provide some relief to Calgary homeowners who’ve seen pricing flat and down since 2015. Six years is a long era of flat pricing in a market for real estate when other markets have had compounded growth in values.
6% is a tiny increase vs wood, which doubled or more last summer.