Several U.S. cities among most expensive places to build in the world

Several U.S. cities rank in the top 10 most expensive urban areas for building construction worldwide, according to a survey by global professional services company Turner & Townsend.

After Tokyo, the costliest construction market at $4,002 per sqm, and Hong Kong, at $3,894 per sqm, San Francisco ($3,720 per sqm) took the bronze. New York ($3,511 per sqm) was close behind, followed by Boston ($3,375 per sqm), Los Angeles ($3,186 per sqm), and Chicago ($2,935 per sqm).

Rising costs across all 11 U.S. markets surveyed are likely to be sustained through 2021, 2022, and 2023, according to Turner & Townsend’s forecasts. The inflation rate in San Francisco, which grew by 3.5% in 2020, is expected to reach 5% through 2022 and 2023.

The principal driver for rising costs is anticipated to be rising infrastructure spending, following President Biden’s plans to commit 1% of GDP into areas including transportation, utilities, broadband networks, and renewable energy, over eight years.