Courtesy of the New Mexico Business Weekly by Steve Ginsberg, Reporter
Based on McGraw-Hill Construction’s report on July contracts for future construction, Las Cruces is the strongest market in New Mexico, while Farmington is the softest.
For the first seven months of 2012, Las Cruces had more than $180 million in construction contracts, a 44 percent gain. Farmington had a 34 percent drop.
Nonresidential construction contracts gained 88 percent in Las Cruces to $87.5 million, while in Farmington, nonresidential work dropped 50 percent.
The Albuquerque metro that encompasses four counties showed a 3 percent decline to $410 million for the first seven months of 2012. Residential spending has increased 32 percent to nearly $241 million, but commercial building contracts are down 30 percent in the Duke City metro.
Santa Fe had a 21 percent drop for the first seven months of 2012, with $80.4 million in construction contracts.