- Some plumbing-product makers, refrigerator makers, and flooring suppliers have either told their customers their prices will jump or already raised them on the back of Trump’s tariff policy. In the past when building product materials prices have risen, homebuilders have passed the costs on to buyers. That could make an unaffordable housing market even more pricey.
President Donald Trump’s tariff policy is ever-changing, and the whipsaw between delays and brand-new threats has Wall Street distraught. The stock market is imploding, and there is chatter about a recession risk. Tariff fears are seeping through to singular industries, particularly those connected to housing via homebuilding or renovations—and housing is already in a tough spot.
Home prices, mortgage rates, building material and construction costs are all high. Trump’s tariffs might only make things worse—and they may have already.
Bank of America analysts revealed in a March 9 note that building product manufacturers—those who make the equipment and supplies that go into and around homes or commercial buildings—have announced price increases over the past several weeks in response to Trump’s executive order for tariffs on goods from China, Canada, and Mexico.
It may be preemptive, Bank of America research analysts Rafe Jadrosich and Shaun Calnan wrote, but in letters to customers, companies called attention to rising expenses because global trade was changing. That policy change impacts steel, copper, and natural gas; the three are used for appliances, plumbing, and flooring, respectively. Each could have a price increase or has already. But that “could give companies flexibility in a dynamic trade policy environment,” analysts wrote.
This is what some economists warned about: that in the face of higher costs caused by Trump’s tariffs, companies would pass those costs on to consumers.
Companies that have announced price hikes
Masco, a home-improvement and building products manufacturer, announced an incoming 7%-to-9% price hike for plumbing-related items, many of which are sourced from China or other parts of Asia, Bank of America found. Masco subsidiary Delta Faucet Company told customers there would be a price increase on faucets starting in May, even though the company recently hiked prices in January. Two other brands under the Masco and Delta umbrella, luxury-faucet makers Brizzo and Peerless, also said prices would jump.
Many cooking appliances and refrigerators are manufactured in Mexico, per the bank analysts; microwaves and undercounter refrigerators are mostly manufactured in China; and the products made in the United States sometimes rely on steel, which has also seen a price increase and is mostly imported from other countries. Popular appliance makers LG, GE, Whirlpool, Thermador, and Bosch have all raised prices, too, in the 5-6% range. Refrigerator and freezer maker Sub-Zero announced an 8% to 13% price increase for March.
In the world of flooring, Shaw Industries said it would increase prices an average of 7% on select products for residential and commercial real estate in March. Luxury vinyl tile is usually made in China and Vietnam, Bank of America said.
Zonda, which provides data and market-research tools about new home construction in North America, said in a March 5 note to clients that tariff policies have resulted in “heightened economic uncertainty, particularly for those industries that rely on cross-border supply chains, including homebuilding.” Supply chains for construction materials including lumber, steel, and aluminum could be disrupted and the materials could see more price hikes, the note said.
Those higher costs need to be absorbed, which could mean more pain for homebuilders, homebuyers, or both.
“The new tariffs pose a significant risk to our industry, as they are expected to drive up the already elevated cost of building materials,” according to Zonda. The Producer Price Index for construction materials is more than 40% higher than it was five years ago.
In 2017, the first Trump administration imposed tariffs on Canadian lumber imports, and it resulted in a surge in lumber prices, according to the Zonda note. The National Association of Home Builders at the time estimated higher lumber costs added $9,000 to the average price of a new single-family home. Builders passed those costs on to buyers.
Zonda’s national builder survey in February asked builders how concerned they were about potential tariffs. Close to 90% of respondents expressed some level of worry, per the note.
“Builder sentiment fell in February to its lowest level since September,” Odeta Kushi, deputy chief economist at First American Financial Corporation, said in an email statement to Fortune on Tuesday. Optimism about single-family home sales expectations for the next six months took a sharp downturn, marking the largest one-month decline since the early months of the pandemic. Aside from that period, it was the biggest drop ever recorded, Kushi explained.
Higher material costs are making it more expensive to build, and sticky inflation has left the market thinking interest rates will stay higher for longer. And, of course, it’s the tariffs, too.
“Uncertainty regarding tariffs further weighs on builder sentiment,” Kushi said. “If tariffs take effect long term, builders will only be able to absorb so much cost before passing it on to consumers during a time when potential buyers are already struggling with housing affordability.”
