Housing Starts Climb In Quispamsis

Quispamsis is seeing a spike in new housing starts this year, according to the town’s engineering director.

The town’s latest building inspection report shows 22 permits for new single-family dwellings were issued during the first three months of 2021.

That is nearly three times higher than the 10-year average of just under eight permits, according to the report.

“We were quite surprised,” Gary Losier, director of engineering and works, said in a recent phone interview.

Losier said they believe a couple of factors have contributed to the increase in housing starts.

He pointed to a milder-than-normal winter which took the edge off a cold-weather start.

“It enabled a lot of developers, a lot of builders to get the foundations in the ground, get some buildings weather-tight so they can move forward,” said Losier.

The second factor, Losier said, is the rising price of lumber over the past few months.

He said some people are moving to get projects done over fears lumber prices could continue to climb.

“What we’re hearing in the industry is that there’s a fear that this level of pricing is here to stay for an extended period,” said Losier.

“If this is going to be the new normal for a year or more and they have the ability to start a project now, then they’re going to do it now while they can.”

Losier said there is no sign of the surge slowing down, noting there are upwards of 100 lots in the queue for approval — either in the review stage or the tentative plan stage.

“Normally, developers don’t put lots on the ground because it’s a tax burden for them,” he said. “If they create a sellable lot, that becomes a tax issue and they want to get rid of them as soon as they can, so they’re usually pretty hesitant about putting a large number of lots on the market.”

Even some architects have said they currently have more drawings on their table than in the previous two years combined, said Losier.

Overall, the town has issued 69 permits this year — more than double the 10-year average — valued at just over $7 million.

Losier said 32 of those permits have been for accessory structures like detached garages, sheds, pools, decks and fences.

Last year at this time, a total of 21 accessory structure permits had been issued, which was also above the long-term average.

Losier said much of the increase last year came as residents who had to cancel planned vacations due to the pandemic suddenly had extra money in hand.