Zoning and red tape gets a bad wrap in arguments that blame the housing crisis on a lack of housing supply. Another narrative credits a shortage of construction workers on the lack of housing supply in the country.
"A shortage of construction labor that has squeezed property developers across the U.S. got worse in June after showing signs of improvement a month earlier," reports Laura Kusisto.
"The number of open construction jobs increased to a seasonally adjusted 225,000 in June from 163,000 in May, according to the Labor Department," adds Kusisto.
The article describes the worker shortage as a "critical issue" for the housing market—"delaying the construction of new homes and causing a supply shortage that is forcing prices higher."
As for why there is such a shortage of willing labor to drive a housing construction boom, the article says workers that left he industry during the Great Recession are reluctant to return.
[The Wall Street Journal article might be behind a paywall for some readers.]
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