Future construction numbers continue to fall

Total future construction contracts in New Hampshire continued their troubling year-over-year downward trend in August.Future construction contracts totaled $93.3 million in August — a 27 percent drop from the $127.1 million recorded in August 2010. Still that was an increase over July, when contracts totaled $90.2 million.According to industry information service McGraw Hill Construction, which collects the data, year to date, total future construction contracts in New Hampshire lag 33 percent behind where they last year.Through August of this year, future construction contracts totaled $1.03 billion, whereas over the same period last year they came to $1.53 billion.The sector that saw the biggest year-over-year decline was nonresidential construction. In August 2010, future nonresidential construction contracts totaled $58.3 million, but this August they plunged by nearly half to $29.8 million.Future residential and nonbuilding contracts also both decreased year over year.Future residential contracts dipped 7 percent from the previous year, from $40 million to $37.4 million. And future nonbuilding contracts — for roads, bridges and similar projects — dipped 9 percent over last August, from $28.8 million to $26 million.Part of the year-over-year discrepancy may be attributable to the drying up of federal stimulus funds for construction projects. — KATHLEEN CALLAHAN/NEW HAMPSHIRE BUSINESS REVIEW