Construction costs in Austria on the rise

New data from Statistics Austria has shown that the cost of residential and housing construction in October 2024 was 4.1% higher than in October 2023.

According to the Austrian statistics body, this increase in costs also extends to other sectors of civil engineering, although at a slower pace.

Specifically, road construction saw a marginal increase in costs of 0.1% year-on-year, while bridge construction experienced a 2.2% rise, and sanitary engineering costs grew by 2.6%, the data showed.

Residential buildings

For residential buildings, the construction cost index reached 128.2 index points in October 2024, which marks a 4.1% increase from the same month in 2023.

However, on a month-on-month basis, compared with September 2024, the costs for residential building construction remained stable, Statistics Austria noted.

Civil engineering

In civil engineering, a pattern of increasing costs was also evident. For road construction, the index stood at 134.6 points in October 2024, a marginal increase on the same period a year ago. However, the monthly comparison showed a small decrease of 0.4%.

Similarly, bridge construction saw an index of 129.2 points, which was down 0.2% on the previous month.

The index for sanitary engineering reaching 131.7 points, which is up 0.1% on a month-on-month basis.

Statistics Austria’s construction cost index tracks changes in the costs faced by construction companies in Austria. These costs include expenses related to materials, energy, transportation, wages, and machinery, which are crucial for ongoing construction projects. The index also provides an overview of the broader economic pressures affecting the construction industry, such as rising material costs and inflation. Read more here.