Utah homebuilders and homebuyers are bracing for the impacts of Trump administration tariffs. Any jump in the cost of building materials could, ultimately, increase new home prices.
Usually, tariffs are not immediately felt after they are implemented because they are first assessed at ports and then passed on through the supply chain, said attorney Robert Babcock, a construction industry representative. But “that is not actually what's happening.”
“Already some suppliers are increasing their pricing in contemplation of tariffs, so pricing is already being impacted,” he said. “The more sophisticated [builders] are trying to get it put into their contracts, which says there’s going to be a price change if and when the tariffs hit.”
That’s unwelcome news in a state where the median home price is now $523,712, according to Zillow.
Utah’s housing shortage is driving prices and to combat it, Gov. Spencer Cox set an ambitious goal to build 35,000 starter homes by 2028. He sees Trump’s tariffs as a “huge gamble” and expressed hope that “President Trump is right” on the issue.
“Everything I learned from my economics classes and from my time as a political science student was that tariffs are bad,” Cox said during his March 20 monthly news conference. “I'm open to new information. I'm open to learning. I'm curious. I'm hopeful that this will lead to something better for our country.”
When it comes to the direct impacts in Utah, the governor said his office is closely monitoring the situation.
“We've put together a small task force, a team of economists that are part of the administration and outside who will be working with all of these industries,” he said. “They’re having those conversations now.”
Home builders are paying particular attention to the tariffs, Babcock said, because up to 30% of the wood used to build American homes comes from Canada. A significant amount of steel is also imported from Canada and Mexico.
For housing advocate and SLC Neighbors for More Neighbors founder Turner Bitton, that translates into one thing for prospective home buyers: higher prices.
“That'll be felt most acutely in terms of supply,” he said. “Every time that we have housing stock that would otherwise be created or homes that would be created through construction, anytime we don't have those created, buyers will feel that because it increases competition for an already limited supply of homes that are out there.”
The newest round of tariffs on imports from around the world is set to go into effect on April 2.
For advocates on the ground like Bitton, the tariffs have added to the anxiety in the housing industry.
“Already since COVID you've seen the cost of materials skyrocket,” he said. “It's partially the reason for a slowdown in some of the, especially, multi-family developments that we've seen nationwide. This is just another, you know, one-two punch of cost increases that are going to hit the housing market.”
When it comes to Utah, Cox said he is looking at “anything we can do” to mitigate the impacts of tariffs on Utah businesses and consumers.
“This is what is happening, based on what we're seeing in those tariffs, good and bad,” he said. “And there will probably be a little of both.”
On the other hand, Cox is a big fan of a Trump administration proposal to open federal land for affordable housing development. Doug Burgum, the Secretary of the Interior, and Scott Turner, the Department of Housing and Urban Development Secretary, wrote a Wall Street Journal op-ed on it. They said a joint task force will explore the idea, identify transferable lands and set affordability goals.
Utah Sen. Mike Lee has long been a proponent of using federal land for housing and it was first explored by the Biden administration in 2024. Despite the enthusiasm, it still has skeptics who point to the need for new infrastructure and potential environmental impacts.
Outside of construction, when it comes to building new homes the next biggest cost is the land. Gaining access to federal lands that Cox said are adjacent to or inside municipalities, could solve for one of those challenges.
“It's something we've been advocating for for a long time, that we desperately need more housing all across the country, especially in the West,” Cox said. “I would love to be able to do that here, and we might just get that opportunity.”
