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TL:DR

Dive Brief:

  • Rider Levett Bucknall’s biannual Crane Count shows the number of cranes in 16 major North American cities are down 44%, or by 8 cranes, when compared to the previous report in the first quarter of the year.
  • Seven of the surveyed cities declined more than 20% from their previous count, according to the report. The drop was not universal, however, as Chicago, Denver, San Francisco and Calgary, Alberta, saw their crane counts increase.
  • Paired with data from the global construction consultant’s Q3 Quarterly Construction Cost Report, the results show that increased national pricing contrasts with fragmented activity in select metro areas, demonstrating a “unique paradox,” according to a Rider Levett Bucknall news release.

Dive Insight:

Among major markets, New York City saw its number of cranes drop from nine to six between Q1 and Q3, per the report. The mix of crane projects in New York includes two commercial, three mixed-use and one residential job spread across different neighborhoods, which shows dispersed activity, according to RLB.
‘The Big Apple’s drop is a reversal from its gains in Q1, and indicates slowing momentum as a result of higher interest rates, financing constraints and project completions`.
Los Angeles also experienced a drop in cranes — decreasing from a 42 to 26 — but there was also reason for optimism. RLB pegged the change to major commercial and cultural projects wrapping up and noted transportation activity has picked up modestly in the interim.
The report also features crane counts for three new U.S. cities — Austin, Texas; Nashville, Tennessee; and Miami.
Amid the declines, some markets shined. For example,Denver is riding high with a 50% increase in cranes from Q1, according to the report. The spike came largely from mixed-use residential projects with ground-floor retail.In addition, the area is transitioning from its past residential boom to a more diversified construction pipeline for the area, with several large master-planned communities in the future, the report said.
Other bright spots came among some growing sectors across surveyed cities. Those include education, federal and transportation, per the report.` Sport, mixed-use and residential projects are also holding steady. However, markets such as commercial, civil and industrial are showing declines, according to the report.’
Amid these fluctuations, contractors face a bifurcated market, the report concluded.
“The balance between declining and rising crane counts points to a transitional phase, where developers are weighing opportunities against ongoing financial pressures,” wrote Taryn Harbert, RLB associate principal, in the report.

My Thoughts 💭

Apparently data centers don’t require cranes but I view this as a bearish signal. The American economy is slowing down. The article tries to paint a silver lining but. Seeing sharp declines on both coast is concerning. This article has a great chart to show the crane fluctuations amongst US cities. Is the Fed late in cutting?
67 sats \ 8 replies \ @grayruby 5h
Do you expect a rebound now that rates are moving lower?
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I do construction operates on such low margins they need cheaper access to capital
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73 sats \ 6 replies \ @grayruby 4h
Tons of projects on hold here in Canada from when rates were elevated. Some guys went bankrupt. I have a buddy who is 400k into a new retirement home development where the developer went bust and now it's in receivership. He is crying he didn't buy 100k of Bitcoin like I told him rather than the initial 100k he put in. He thought he was going to double his money within 18 months and now we are 3 years later and he has doubled down on the project twice and has no idea when and how much of his money he will see again.
He would have 1.2M if he had just pumped the 400k into Bitcoin.
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To be fair. That's not correct because he put the money in in tranches over 3 years so he likely wouldn't have a 3x but at least a double. But he would have had a 3x on the initial 100k that I told him put in Bitcoin instead of risky real estate development projects.
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Yeah, just this very fact alone can cause more contraction in the construction market. The risk might not be worth the reward.
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I mostly thought it was a bad idea because I know he was not educated in the market. He got lucky and had some extra money from selling a rental property he had for years that skyrocketed in value due to insane money supply expansion in Canada and thought his good fortune made him a real estate mogul. He got sucked into a project that promised big returns in a short time, that was actually a very good idea and location, but poorly timed and overindebted.
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"Only when the tide goes out do you discover who's been swimming naked."
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30 sats \ 1 reply \ @grayruby 3h
Always the case. Buffett will never get Bitcoin but he does have some great quotes and life advice.
When I first saw the headline I thought you meant the bird not construction equipment lolol
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