Tariffs on aluminum, steel, and lumber imposed by the Trump administration have already added about $9,000 to the cost of building the average home, but luxury projects are absorbing the costs relatively easily.
Jerry Howard, CEO of the National Association of Home Builders, explains, "People who are at that end of the market and are buying homes in that price point, they obviously negotiate and get the best pricing they can, but it's really about what they want and their willingness to pay, and so the market doesn't get as affected by it." California Building Industry Association CEO Dan Dunmoyer tells Mansion Global that the tariffed materials may add up to five to six percent in additional costs to an average home, the tariffs add only about one or two percent to a typical luxury project in the area.
Home builders throughout the U.S. have seen stratospheric price increases on steel, aluminum, lumber and other core housing materials this summer due to tariffs imposed by the Trump administration, and experts say the industry is bracing for continued pain, as the president appears likely to move forward with a proposed tax on at least $200 billion worth of goods imported from China.