In Las Vegas, where Pardee Homes is building 150 percent more homes this year than they did last year, finding workers is increasingly difficult.
"We lost quite a bit of labor to the oil fields and to places like Wyoming and North Dakota, where you would not expect it to go," noted Klif Andrews, Pardee's Las Vegas president.
Andrews said he is paying workers five to ten percent more now, and that has pushed his home prices higher. "We've raised median home prices up over 15 percent, so we've been able to stay a little bit ahead of it, but cost increases, it's not just labor, it's also materials," he added. |