ABSTRACT

Over the years, there has been an increasing cost of building projects. This work aims at examining the extent of the trend of increase and decrease of prices of materials used for building. price of selected materials is based on choice , and model suitable for the kind of structure ,be in roofing, painting, tiling ,plumbing more to mention, the transaction of price is between the contractor and the supplier on price under the normal credit terms specified and discount for average contractor. by establishing the trend in building material prices over the years, providing price analysis of these materials which would identify significant variances on the cost of building projects and then foster remedial measures for fluctuation to be tackled. This research is important as it would help in the control of cost of building projects with respect to its inflation. Hence “Price Relative Index” will be used as a tool for analyzing the data gotten from survey done in five major building material markets in Awka south LGA Anambra  state. “Average Price Relative Index” will equally be used for further analysis. It was discovered that there has been a tremendous instability in material prices over the years, fluctuation of building project and its subsequent inflation as materials take a higher percentage in the overall building cost. It is recommended that government policies should be made not to have sporadic effect on material prices and also, measures to be taken to tackle inflation and exchange ratein the country.

 1.1 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

Right from the earliest times, shelter remains the second most needed amenity by man after food. This need for shelter by man explains the origin of building construction. These days, buildings are not needed only for residential purposes but for other uses like offices, schools, industries and hospitals etc.With the growth in the construction industry, cost of construction products becomes an important factor. People now recognize the need for having ideas of what a new building will cost. Hence the need for price in building projects and its control becomes very important during construction. The Longman Dictionary defines fluctuation as a sudden change in price. In Nigeria, just like in some other countries of the world, sharp increase in the most inputs to construction like in areas such as materials, components and labor is often experienced at relatively short time or notice. Since construction products take some time to come by, those changes tend to increase the cost of building execution. According to Oforeh (1991), “the term fluctuation is frequently used in economic analysis to explain the unstable (up and down) nature of prices of goods and services over a given period of time”. It can be seen that fluctuation has

become a trend in the industry which cannot be neglected as the result is not favorable to the stakeholders in the construction industry. Turner (1979) stated that a graphic display of the unstable (up and down) nature of goods and services over a given period of time by economists and statisticians produces the so called “scatter” diagram from which a line of “regression” is obtained to give a clearer picture of the general behavior or trend in the price movement. The trend can also be obtained by the methods of moving averages. The general trend in prices often shows upward movement (although with varying gradients) and this may be the reason why the term fluctuation has come to be associated or is always construed to mean price increase.

STATEMENT OF PROBLEM

As a result of the unsteady nature of prices of materials, components and labor cost as it pertains to building projects, initiating a project by a client or an organization requires a large measure of resources to produce a result or an end product different or precisely higher than the estimated. Hence, most building projects in Nigeria run above estimated cost over time due to inflation. Moreover, in this day of ever increasing cost, majority of clients of building projects are insisting on projects being executed to give maximum value for money-tending towards ways in which these fluctuations can be tackled, so that projects will be executed within the estimated cost. transportation in Nigeria has increasingly affected price of transporting selected building materials to some area of Awka city. As a result of transportation cost, some selected materials such as sand, wood, tiles, glass, rods ,cement , which are large in size, weight, length, mass, can increase the cost of delivery from the source to the site of construction. some selected materials like cement and sand are highly used in buildings and demands are high and sellers of cement add price because of the cost of delivery of cement from badagry area of lagos to Awka.

1.2 SCOPE AND LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY

As the topic suggests, the scope of this study is limited to the distance and price of selected building material commonly used in the course of carrying out building projects. This dissertation is with particular reference to some significant materials used for constructing buildings. Anambra  state, Awka south local government area was chosen. The study focuses on the new  prices of building materials, the significant materials used for constructing buildings, from 1999 to 2015. The study will also examine the causes and effects of fluctuation on building project delivery and attempt to foster reasonable solution to tackle it.

 AIMS AND OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

The aim of this research is to analyses the price trend of some selected building materials in awka south local government of anambra state with the following objectives:

1. To examine the distance and prices of selected building materials in awka

2. To determine whether there is change in price of the selected building materials from 1999 to 2015

3. To provide useful comparison of price level and trend of building materials across awka

1.4 RESEARCH QUESTIONS

Upon the identification of the above problems and objectives, it is imperative to ask the following questions to help give solution to the problem.

1. Is there increase in the distance and prices of selected materials used for building project from 1999 to 2015?

2. Does a change in the prices of these materials have any significant effect on the cost of building projects?

3. What is the trend of cost increase in building projects delivery for the past ten years?

 4. How could this cost increase on the distance and price of selected building materials be tackled?

1.5 RESEARCH HYPOTHESIS

Hypothesis I

Ho: There is no increase in the distance and selected prices of selected materials used for building projects from 1999 to 2015.

Hi: There is increase in the distance and prices of selected materials used for building projects from 1999 to 2015.

Hypothesis II

Ho: The change in the prices of building materials does not have any significant effect on the cost of building projects.

Hi: The change in the prices of building materials has significant effect on the cost of building projects.

Hypothesis III

Ho: There has been an upward movement in the trend of cost fluctuation in building projects for the past ten years.

Hi: There has been no upward movement in the trend of cost increase in building projects for the past ten years.

Because of the problems alluded to this research work, the above hypothesis was postulated by the researcher to guide in the data analysis proceedings. These above hypothesis were all put in both null (Ho) and alternative (hi) hypothesis.

 1.6 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

This research involves the examination of building construction cost and its materials price fluctuation. This study would be very helpful to the Architects, Builders and Quantity Surveyors etc. and to the construction industry as a whole, and it will also act as a good guide or technique for monitoring and analyzing the rate of fluctuation of construction inputs in the construction industry. The study will serve as a reference point upon which other subsequent research studies will be based on.

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