The building industry has never been busier, but soaring costs are making it tough to make a profit.The industry says small builders are going out of business amid the crisis.Victoria’s construction industry says the soaring cost and short supply of materials is sending builders broke despite near-record demand for their services.
Commissioner Anna Cronin wanted builders to have the ability to insert “escalation clauses” in contracts worth less than $500,000 – squarely aimed at the domestic building sector – to allow them to bill clients more than the fixed price to cover the rising costs of materials was not supported. But that comes too late for Torquay builder Anthony Lococo, who has decided to close his business – putting his seven employees out of work – because he cannot operate profitably in the prevailing market conditions.