Looking up at Jean-Michel Alie’s two-story home perched on a small hill at the end of a long driveway in the Eastern Townships, it’s easy to understand the joy he feels as he describes the process it took to build it.

With the help of friends and family, Alie dismantled a small bungalow that once stood on his property and built a new home with double the square footage. He estimates he recycled 80 per cent of the materials from the old bungalow into his new home.

“I took out all the nails from the old wood and cut them down and every time I put a piece of wood in (to the new house), I felt proud and innovative.”

But all the wood from the old home is now used up and construction on Alie’s home has stalled as demand for and price of materials rises across the province.

A Leger survey conducted last December of 1,000 people indicated that since last March, 65 per cent of homeowners have done renovations to their homes, mostly related to outside patio, terrace balcony and landscaping but also plumbing, electrical, roofing and insulation work.

“Because of that I haven’t built my garage,” Alie says, estimating the price of wood to have almost doubled since the start of the pandemic. “I almost bought a mill to chop down trees in my yard and make my own wood.”

Another Leger survey among 750 entrepreneurs and construction and renovation companies said that since March 2020, 4 out of 5 have faced problems such as delivery times or suppliers being out of stock.

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