Why is the cost of home-buying skyrocketing?

Not only are homes in high demand in the Triangle, but the cost of materials used to build them have also gone up.

“Material and labor on the driveway and sidewalks are up about 10 percent," said Blake Massengill, owner of Massengill Design Build.

"Siding material and labor are up about 15 percent," he said.

From countertops to lumber to the kitchen sink – the cost of all the materials that go into a house have increased, and it all adds up to more expensive homes.

According to Massengill, it now costs $40,000 more for materials than for the same job a year ago.

The higher prices seem to have been impacted by two things:

1. The pandemic slowed the production of building materials.

2. The demand for housing, particularly in the Triangle, is up.

According to Paul Kane of the Home Builders Association of Raleigh-Wake County, it was just the perfect storm.

“These aren’t home prices being jacked up because the builders are trying to make a bigger profit," he said. "These are home prices that are rising because of these material price increases that the builders have no control over.”

Now that building materials are more valuable, the threat of theft on the job site is also up.

Tune in to WRAL-TV at 6 p.m. to hear how home-builders are deterring theft at development sites.