Building Contracts Rise 73% in County

A 73% surge in nonresidential building contracts sparked a 23% gain in the value of all building contracts in January in Orange County, to $180.2 million from $146.4 million.

The value of nonresidential contracts totaled $72.8 million in January, compared to $42.1 million in January, 1984, according to figures released by the F. W. Dodge division of McGraw-Hill Information Systems Co. Residential contracts were essentially flat, rising 3%, to $107.5 million from $104.3 million.

Of the nonresidential contracts, warehouses accounted for $11.8 million, up 178% from $4.3 million last year; office building contracts were $23.5 million, up 144% from $9.6 million, and the value of contracts for stores was $20 million, up 19% from $17 million.

Ben Bartolotto, director of the Construction Industry Research Board, a nonprofit, industry-funded agency with headquarters in Burbank, cautioned, however, that the hefty construction contracts awarded in January do “not necessarily set a pattern for the year.”

Bartolotto said the number of building permits granted by local governments in Orange County tapered off in January, which will mean fewer construction contracts and building starts in upcoming weeks. He said that while the number of building permits issued for nonresidential construction in the county in January was 22% greater than in January, 1984, housing permits declined by 26% year-to-year in January.

Statewide, Bartolotto said, the Construction Industry Research Board forecasts about a 5% decline in nonresidential construction permits in 1985, a 12% decline in permits for apartments and condominiums and a 7% drop in permits for single-family homes.

Home builders are slowing down, Bartolotto said, to prevent a build-up of unsold inventory with the expectation of rising home mortgage rates.