What do homebuilders want? Immigration reform

US homebuilders are navigating both higher mortgage rates as well as constrained capital for building projects. But there is another big labor factor the industry is trying to figure out.

National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) CEO Jim Tobin explains the industry's high labor demand that could be filled by skilled immigrant workers. According to the NAHB's own Eye On Housing Report, data from 2022 suggests that "a third of all carpenters and 41% of construction laborers are of foreign-born origin" in the United States.

"Our number one issue this year was about workforce development and immigration, which is so politicized right now. And it won't be until whoever we find out who the next president is, where we can really tackle the issue," Tobin says. later adding: "We want people who want to come into this country legally to come through in an orderly fashion. We want people who want to work in the construction industry to have a visa that allows them to work in our industry, just like they can work in the seasonal market, or they can work in agriculture."

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This post was written by Luke Carberry Mogan.

Video Transcript

I'm also curious about the supply side of the equation in terms of their supply chain, not just with stuff but with labour, right?

What's going on with costs on that?

Labour is still constricted month after month for the better part of a decade, there's 400,000 openings in the construction labour market that continues to keep it tight.

That's why we invest so much time and effort into training the next generation of skilled contractors out there.

Why we need immigration reform when you go to Capitol Hill.

Jim, you talk to lawmakers about immigration policy.

That was our number one issue this year was about workforce development and immigration, which is so politicised right now.

And it won't be until who ever find out who the next president is, where we can really tackle the issue.

But we have got to solve the immigration problem from the border security all the way to what do we do with the undocumented?

So what's your priority, then?

What?

I mean, what would an ideal forget about what's going on in Washington on the political side?

But what would an ideal situation look like for you guys?

Immigration reform wise, so secure the border.

We want people who want to come into this country legally to come through in an orderly fashion.

We want people who want to work in the construction industry to have a visa that allows them to work in our industry just like they can work in the seasonal market or they can work in agriculture.

And then we've got to figure out how we can have them as employers, how we can be responsible as well to make sure that people that are working on our job sites are work eligible that is critical to the functioning.

This and then, of course, we have to figure out what we're gonna do with the undocumented and what's the realistic goal there about bringing them out of the shadows and putting those people in into the economy.

I'm sorry, just what percentage of the construction workforce do you think is undocumented?

I don't know about undocumented, but I can tell you from the immigration perspective, about 23% of the construction industry at large, not just home building, is immigrant labour, so it's a critical component of our workforce,