The latest monthly construction spending report was released by the U.S. Census Bureau on Monday, June 1, and it showed that spending increased in April 0.4 percent over March, and 0.9 percent year over year.
Residential construction was up 0.8 percent in April over March and public construction was up 0.4 percent month over month.
Maor Greenberg, co-founder and CEO of Spacial, an AI-powered structural engineering platform for residential construction and a 19-year veteran of the construction and real estate industries, shared the following comments about the latest data. Please feel free to use them in any stories you’re working on!
- Spending up, but caution is warranted: “Total spending was up 0.4 percent for the month and up 0.9 percent for the year—that is smaller than the margin of error. For builders, it means that the market is not coming to rescue you. There’s no tailwind from rising demand. If costs go up, builders end up eating them. If starts are slowing, then the 0.4 percent spend increase still does nothing for builders.”
- Warning signs in residential spending: “Residential spending was up 0.8 percent for the month and that may look good, but it’s actually not. Single-family spending is down 2.9 percent from a year ago. So far, the first four months of 2026 are running 5.6 percent behind last year. The bumps we are getting do not undo that. Dollars are not homes—spending can rise while building activity actually declines. Land, materials, labor and financing all cost more than a year ago. Builders are spending more, but building less. The year-over-year drop is the tell in what’s going to happen in the following months. Spending today is going toward projects started months ago. Fewer starts now means a thinner pipeline into fall.”
- Look beyond the headline: “Although the spending looks steady, we’re building less than we were a year ago. Affordability is getting worse and that’s going to hit the middle-class the hardest. The wider concern is the 18.4 percent drop in manufacturing. This signals where companies think the economy is going. Look at the details, and not just the headline of the report.”
