Development

AUSTIN, TEXAS — Delayed payments for wages and invoices are projected to represent an estimated $208 billion in excess costs to the construction industry this year, up 53 percent from $136 billion in 2021, according to a newly released report from Rabbet, an Austin-based construction finance software provider. Rabbet’s 2022 Construction Payments Report surveyed 137 general contractors and subcontractors across the U.S. about the speed of payments in the industry and examined the growing impact on the cost for the broader sector. The report studied how general contractors and subcontractors across the country managed working capital, bidding decisions and project risks in the face of slow payments during the last 12 months. The survey was conducted online in September. Forty-nine percent of subcontractors reported that over the past 12 months, they waited longer than 30 days on average to receive payment from general contactors. Thirty-seven percent of respondents indicated that work had been delayed or stopped in the last 12 months due to delays in payments to crew members, up from 28 percent in 2021. Additionally, 27 percent of subcontractors reported having filed a lien in the last 12 months to keep possession of a property until their firm received payment …