Cost of Materials Rises, Especially for Smaller Builders

Educational

NAHB Eye on Housing reports that material costs climbed 6.7% year-over-year in the July 2026 NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index survey, with nearly three in four builders seeing increases of up to 15% on the same house. The burden falls hardest on smaller builders, who typically lack the purchasing power and supplier leverage of larger competitors. That squeeze reshapes project math across the board, from spec builds to fix-and-flip rehabs to ground-up construction.

For builders and investors navigating this environment, tighter margins make financing structure more consequential than ever. loantrust.ai works in this space with programs designed around the actual economics of investment property: DSCR loans that qualify on rental cash flow rather than personal income, bridge and new-construction financing for projects in progress, and bank-statement programs for self-employed borrowers. Each file is packaged by one licensed MLO, not routed through a call center, which means the financing strategy is built alongside the project strategy from the start.

When material costs can shift fifteen percent in a year, the value of a financing partner who understands investor timelines and property-level cash flow becomes clearer. loantrust.ai operates as a dedicated partner rather than a transactional call center, with an Atlanta-based brokerage licensed to originate both consumer and investor mortgages. In a market where input costs are unpredictable, that direct, program-specific approach to loan structuring is a practical counterweight to the pressure builders already face.