President Trump’s ongoing tariff policies have contributed to an increase in basic building material costs, and as a result have also depressed new home construction.
So says a report just issued by the Congressional Joint Economic Committee, which charges that due to the upped tariffs, “the price of copper and copper products in February 2026 was 25% higher compared to the year before,” while the price of steel mill products, including pipes, steel bars, and wire, jumped by 21% during that same time period.
Additional cost increases have been seen with a 6.6% jump in tools and hardware, a 6.2% increase in sheet metal products, and a 4% increase in household appliance manufacturing.
The report is authored by the Democrat members of the committee and contends that as of early this year the “rate at which builders secured construction permits and started construction had sunk below 2024 levels.”
Even more, says the report, the number of permits for new residential construction as of late last summer had sunk to its lowest point since May of 2020, “one of the worst months of the pandemic-era slowdown in construction.”
Altogether, the report says, the President’s increased tariff policies have “increased the cost of construction by $10,900 or more.”
In a separate statement, New Mexico Democrat Senator Martin Heinrich, who is a member of the committee, remarked that “far too many New Mexicans are struggling to find an affordable place they can call home—all while costs continue to rise due to Trump’s unlawful tariffs.”
Trump has continued to defend his tariff policies, arguing that their stimulative impact on the U.S. economy have not yet been fully felt. In addition, the President last week threatened to impose secondary tariffs of 50% on any nation supplying Iran with weapons.
April 20, 2026
By Garry Boulard
Photo courtesy of US Senate
