Construction in CO (Grand Junction, Parker: real estate market, custom home, construction jobs)

[CoreyXJ]

How is the availability of construction jobs in Colorado? Preferably skilled trades, as I am a carpenter from Michigan and there is no work here, I cant imagine anything worse than Michigan though. So whats the story? Also how steady is the work? Rate of layoffs?

Anybody have any sources for Construction jobs in Colorado?

[Mike from back east]

Originally Posted by CoreyXJ

How is the availability of construction jobs in Colorado? Preferably skilled trades, as I am a carpenter from Michigan and there is no work here, I cant imagine anything worse than Michigan though. So whats the story? Also how steady is the work? Rate of layoffs? Anybody have any sources for Construction jobs in Colorado?

All I can tell you is that there is both residential and commercial work being done here, though it's down quite a bit from the heyday of 2003-05. The I-25 corridor from Ft Collins to COL SPGS is the primary area, though there is plenty of boomtown oil field work on the western slope (Grand Junction) which is bound to need some construction skills. There are threads about Grand Junction, you can find them in the index or use our Search tool.

[almost heaven]

I have been asking the same question for over a year now and have gotten few responses. My family is in Parker Co and every time I come to visit all you see is construction everywhere. I know for a fact that single family home construction is dead, but the retail/comm work is going strong and the remodle/basement work is always going. I am in the Bay Area of California and in the lase 22 years I have been in construction here there is never a lack of work. I am looking to relocate as well and the vibe I have felt for some time is that unless you are in Colorado with a co number and address the likely hood of a response to a resume is slim. It's a nice place to live and raise family, good luck.

[Noahma]

Originally Posted by almost heaven

I have been asking the same question for over a year now and have gotten few responses. My family is in Parker Co and every time I come to visit all you see is construction everywhere. I know for a fact that single family home construction is dead, but the retail/comm work is going strong and the remodle/basement work is always going. I am in the Bay Area of California and in the lase 22 years I have been in construction here there is never a lack of work. I am looking to relocate as well and the vibe I have felt for some time is that unless you are in Colorado with a co number and address the likely hood of a response to a resume is slim. It's a nice place to live and raise family, good luck.

Residential is not completly dead, Homes priced in the upper 700's-1mil + are going strong. We had twice as many homes over 1 mil. built in Colorado last year than any previous year. I am on the design side of things (Large custom homes) It has definatly slowed down on the smaller homes though, but there may still be work to be had.

[jazzlover]

While it is always possible for skilled craftsmen to find work, general construction is going to be a challenge--if not immediately, probably within the next 6-12 months. Financing for both smaller and larger projects not yet in the pipeline is likely to be very difficult to secure. I'm also starting to hear some unpleasant rumblings out of the commercial real estate markets--this while that part of the economy is still sputtering along.

The big question is what happens in the general economy in the next few months. The era of Colorado's economy being "immune" from national economic trends is long over--truth is, it never really was. One trend that Colorado has exhibited for decades is often lagging the nation in economic trends. "Newbies" should not assume because Colorado is not plunging into recession as quickly as the rest of the country that it won't go into a recession. Traditionally, Colorado goes into recession later than the rest of the US, and often emerges later, as well. People also should not assume that the construction industry is "recession-proof" in Colorado, either. About a decade of robust construction in Colorado (the Colorado economy has actually dangerously over-relied on that sector of late) has led some to believe that construction is not cyclical in Colorado. 50 years of history prior to the last 10 lay waste to that theory. In fact, the history has been more one of boom and bust. I think we are at the beginning of a MAJOR economic downturn, both nationally and in Colorado, and I think construction is going to be a first and quite brutal casualty of it. All of the pieces are in place for that. Simply stated, real estate is overpriced, overbuilt, and WAY over-leveraged everywhere--and that includes Colorado. It IS a bubble and it WILL deflate.