Roofing and Siding Contractors NAICS 238160, 238170

Mar 17, 2026 - Homebuilder Confidence Remains Low

• Home builder confidence in the single-family market rose slightly in March, but builders remain concerned about housing affordability, higher construction costs, and shortages of buildable lots and labor, according to the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB). Home builder sentiment, as measured by the NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI), rose one point to 38 in March 2026. Any HMI reading over 50 indicates that more builders see conditions as good than poor. The HMI survey also showed that 37% of builders reduced home prices in March to lure potential buyers off the sidelines, although the average price reduction of 6% remained unchanged from February. While the war in Iran, and resulting higher oil prices, could pose additional challenges, recent executive orders by President Trump aimed at reducing regulatory hurdles to homebuilding are seen as a positive step.
• The rapid expansion of data center development driven by artificial intelligence is reshaping land markets and creating new challenges for the home building industry, according to The Wall Street Journal. Tech companies are outbidding residential developers for land, making housing projects less financially viable. In Northern Virginia, data centers accounted for 20% to 30% of land development from 2013 to 2021, with activity from 2022 to 2024 rising 50% above the prior nine years. Rising land costs, limited available sites, and competition for labor and materials are constraining new housing supply. Builders say elevated prices make projects difficult to justify, contributing to shortages that already exceed 75,000 homes in some regions and pushing affordability further out of reach for many buyers.

• The roofing industry faces several ongoing challenges, including higher material costs and increased immigration enforcement, according to Roofing Contractor magazine's 2026 State of the Roofing Industry Report. Nearly half (49%) of roofing contractors surveyed ranked the current economy/inflation as their top challenge, followed by increased building materials costs (38%), and a lack of qualified workers (36%). About 55% of contractors reported that their labor costs had risen, with an average increase of 14%. Despite ongoing headwinds, 78% of roofing contractors expected their 20206 sales volumes to increase, and 89% believe their sales will be higher in three years.
• Construction spending for nonresidential buildings is expected to remain sluggish in 2026 and 2027, according to the latest American Institute of Architects’ (AIA) Consensus Construction Forecast. Spending on nonresidential building construction is expected to rise 1% in 2026 and 2.2% in 2027. Through 2027, commercial facility growth will be led by data centers, with spending increasing 26.3% in 2026 and 16.5% in 2027. However, offices are expected to see a sharp decline in spending over the forecast period, while warehouse and retail will see weak growth this year and modest gains in 2027. Manufacturing construction spending will fall 3.9% in 2026 and drop 2.8% next year. Spending on institutional projects will grow 2.7% this year, and 2.8% in 2027, led by steady growth in the health sector, but educational, and amusement and recreation project spending will be flat.