SANTO DOMINGO- Building materials (5.99%) and paint (5.97%) were the products that registered the main price variations last April, according to the report of the Direct Housing Cost Index (ICDV), prepared by the National Statistics Office (ONE).
The agency's monthly bulletin highlights that meters and breakers also experienced increases, with 3.85%; wood, with 1.54%; floors and ceramics, with 1.48%; and equipment and appliances for water and sanitary installations, with 1.20%.
The publication from the ONE highlights that in April 2024 the ICDV averaged 223.73, registering an increase of 0.95 points, compared to the previous month which was 222.78.
“From December 2022 to date, the index showed a cumulative variation of 1.52%. Comparing the results of April 2024 with those of April 2023, the index has shown a variation of 0.05%,” the report states.
It adds that the decreases during the fourth month of 2024 were in steel, with -0.36%; electrical wires, with -0.46%; subcontracting of carpentry, with -0.64%; and PVC pipes and parts, with -1.62%.
By type of housing, the ICDV was 226.10 for single-family housing on one level; 226.02 for single-family housing on two levels; 218.19 for multi-family housing on four levels; and 224.60 for multi-family housing on eight levels or more, details the information survey by the agency.
There was also a variation in the ICDV by cost group in materials with 0.97%; labor with 0.00%; machinery with -0.01%; tools with -0.09%; and subcontracts with -0.16%.
“In other words, while materials have seen a significant increase, the other categories have experienced a reduction or have remained stable, with subcontracting being the category with the greatest decrease,” the report explains.
The Direct Housing Construction Cost Index (ICDV) is a statistical tool that allows us to know the monthly variations experienced by the cost of construction of four types of housing: single-family homes of 1 and 2 levels, and multi-family homes of 4 and 8 levels or more, in the National District and the province of Santo Domingo (indirect costs such as: land, design, construction permits, financial costs, profits of the construction company, etc. are excluded).
Its calculation methodology is based on the Laspeyres Index, which considers a basket with a structure of fixed weights over time and compares the prices of the reference period with those of the base period (October 2009).
