Despite Housing Bump, Georgia Contracts Tumble 11% in April

A 61% jump in the value of new residential projects couldn’t overcome sharp declines in the nonresidential and infrastructure categories, as the overall value of new Georgia contracts fell 11% in April, according to McGraw-Hill Construction. In all, the company estimated the state’s April contracts at roughly $718.3 million.

During April, Georgia contractors gained $443.2 million of new residential work, well ahead of the year-ago volume of $275.8 million. But the nonresidential market fell by 51% to deliver just $199.8 million in new contracts. The nonbuilding sector, which includes infrastructure, dropped 42% compared to a year ago for a $75.2-million tally.

On a year-to-date basis, Georgia’s 2012 construction contracts total nearly $11.7 billion, well ahead of the nearly $3.2 billion recorded at the same time a year ago.

That gain is mostly due to a surge in the nonbuilding sector, which was boosted by Southern Co.’s Plant Vogtle nuclear powerplant project moving ahead to construction earlier this year. As a result, the nonbuilding category now stands at roughly $9 billion, compared to last year’s $499 million estimate through April of 2011.

The nonresidential building market is 20% behind 2011’s early pace, however, with a $1.2-billion tally through April. So far, McGraw-Hill estimates Georgia’s new residential contracts have totaled nearly $1.5 billion to date.

Scott Judy is Deputy Editor for Regions, and editor of ENR Southeast, one of Engineering News-Record's 10 Regional publications. His roughly 27 years as a construction journalist began with an 11-year stint covering Midwest construction projects. In 2000, Judy helped launch the publication now known as ENR Southeast. He often delves into controversial aspects of the construction industry such as bankruptcies and fatal accidents, and wishes he would never have to cover another accident but suspects that he might.