> why are building materials and tradespeople also at sky-high prices (in Ireland)? Similar issue in NZ. Cost of building materials was getting extreme. There'

> why are building materials and tradespeople also at sky-high prices (in Ireland)? Similar issue in NZ. Cost of building materials was getting extreme. There's an argument to be made that these are linked to profitability of building and so increased during the speculative boom. Helped along by the fact that many suppliers are monopolies. Cost of building materials has however started falling considerably since the property market crashed here. Likewise the cost of labour and building quotes overall.