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U.S. building material prices rose 0.4% in September and were 5.5% higher than a year earlier, their highest year-over-year level since December 2022, according to a National Association of Home Builders analysis of Bureau of Labor Statistics data. Overall inputs to new residential construction, including goods and services, rose 10.3% year over year, with energy and service costs posting larger increases.
U.S. building material prices rose 5.5% year over year in September, their highest annual rate since December 2022, according to an analysis by the National Association of Home Builders of Bureau of Labor Statistics data. Prices for the broader set of goods and services used in new residential construction increased 10.3% from September 2025, adding to cost pressures facing builders and other construction businesses.
The monthly increase in building material prices was more modest: the measure rose 0.4% in September. Across input goods for new residential construction, prices climbed 1.8% over the month, up from a 0.9% increase in August. The broader input index, combining goods and services, increased 2.0% in September. These measures cover different baskets, so the goods-only and combined figures should not be treated as interchangeable.
Energy costs drove the sharpest increases among the goods described in the report. Energy input prices rose 13.0% in September and were 64.1% higher than a year earlier. No. 2 diesel fuel rose 24.2% during the month and 115.2% year over year; regular unleaded gasoline rose 13.0% month to month and 66.1% from a year earlier. Those figures capture particularly large energy movements, rather than the rate for building materials overall.
Some non-energy products also recorded increases. Particleboard and fiberboard prices rose 3.5% in September and were 7.8% higher year over year. Softwood veneer and plywood increased 2.7% for the month and 15.9% over the year. Mineral wool rose 2.8% month to month, but its year-over-year increase was 1.6%. The mix of changes shows why an overall price index does not describe the movement of every product category.
Higher Costs Reach Construction Budgets
The data matter to home builders, contractors, suppliers and prospective buyers because they track the prices of inputs used to build new homes. When materials, fuel and services become more expensive, businesses may face higher project costs. The figures do not establish how much any particular home’s construction cost or sale price changed; that depends on the materials used, contracts, timing and other project-specific factors.
The gap between the 5.5% annual increase for building materials and the 10.3% rise for combined construction inputs highlights the role of costs beyond materials. Service inputs rose 11.3% year over year, while energy inputs rose 64.1%. Those faster increases can affect transportation, handling and other business expenses, although the report does not quantify how much each contributed to the total index or how firms will respond.
For households, the figures are an indicator of cost conditions facing new residential construction, not a direct forecast of home prices or mortgage payments. Builders may absorb some increases, pass some along, adjust schedules or seek different products. The data alone do not show which response is taking place or the effect on housing affordability.
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Goods and Services Both Increased
The report was published by Hardware Retailing on October 16, 2026, and attributes the underlying figures to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, with analysis from the National Association of Home Builders. It distinguishes among building materials, energy and other goods, and services used as inputs to new residential construction. The combined index includes goods and services, as well as energy, which helps explain why its annual change differs from the building-material figure.
Service input prices increased 2.2% in September and 11.3% compared with a year earlier. The report says that annual service increase was the highest since April 2022, when service prices rose 17.7% year over year. Within services, trade services were up 14.0% annually, transportation and warehousing services rose 19.3%, and other services increased 3.1%. These are year-over-year comparisons, not monthly changes.
The September results point to continuing cost pressure across several parts of residential construction, but the figures are price-index movements, not a tally of actual spending by builders. They also do not, by themselves, establish the causes behind each increase. The report identifies the pronounced rise in energy prices, while providing no detailed causal breakdown for the full index.
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Index Data Leave Questions Open
The published figures do not specify how much the September increases will affect individual building projects, home prices or construction activity. Price indexes measure changes in input prices across categories; they do not show the exact costs paid by every builder or the share of a project budget represented by each item. The source also does not provide a forecast for subsequent months.
The report gives the recorded price movements but does not identify the causes of the sharp energy increases or explain whether those changes are expected to persist. It also does not state whether builders have passed higher costs on to customers, renegotiated supplier terms or changed material choices. Those questions require information beyond the September index figures.
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Future Reports Will Show Persistence
The next relevant development will be subsequent Bureau of Labor Statistics data and any further analysis from the National Association of Home Builders. New monthly readings can show whether building-material inflation continues, slows or reverses, and whether energy and service costs maintain their recent pace. The September report does not give a date for a specific follow-up analysis.
Builders and suppliers will also have to respond to actual prices and contract conditions in their markets. Until newer data are available, the confirmed picture is limited to September: building materials were up 5.5% year over year, while combined goods and services used in new residential construction were up 10.3%.
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Key Questions
How much did building material prices rise in September?
They rose 0.4% from August and were 5.5% higher than in September 2025, according to the NAHB analysis of BLS data.
What does the 10.3% increase measure?
It is the year-over-year increase in the combined price index for goods and services used as inputs to new residential construction. It is broader than the building-material measure alone.
Which costs rose most sharply?
Energy input prices increased 64.1% year over year. No. 2 diesel fuel was up 115.2% year over year, while transportation and warehousing services rose 19.3% over the same period.
Does this mean new home prices rose 10.3%?
No. The figure measures prices for construction inputs, not the sale prices of new homes. The report does not quantify how September’s input changes affected home prices or individual building projects.
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