Leading Question

Conventional wisdom suggests so. Orders for repair, remodeling and rebuilding have spiked, and the law of supply and demand means that contractors should be able to increase prices and make a tidy profit.

In reality, however, the construction industry will not be lining its pockets with greenbacks, experts say. In fact, many insiders are anxious about the situation.

"It's scary," says Kelly Denmark, president of Cape Coral-based Hammer Construction Services. "Instead, it's going to be kind of a hardship."

Here's why, according to Denmark and her contractor cohorts:

First, building material supplies that were already dwindling and costly?concrete and aluminum, to name a couple, are becoming further exhausted after Wilma. But it's Hurricane Katrina that will tip the scales once rebuilding begins along the Gulf Coast. Materials will be in great demand there and, Denmark and others in the local industry fear, will create larger voids and higher costs.

Although everyone anticipates stiffer prices, it's difficult to determine how high they will go. And that makes it hard to estimate the number of jobs that will be undertaken in the next year or so. A winning bid that looks good on paper today may turn out to be a loser if costs run out of control later.

Another concern is a growing labor shortage. Some workers are leaving construction sites to take clean-up jobs that pay better. If wages are higher in the area hit by Katrina when rebuilding work begins there, Southwest Florida could lose more workers. And some companies might also head up the Gulf Coast for bigger profits, further delaying projects here.

You won't find Naples' Henning Construction going anywhere, though. "We don't chase hurricanes," says president Heather Henning.

Henning Construction is loyal to Southwest Florida, she says. Also, moving a company out of its established market is not practical because the insurance-claim process, finding labor and establishing a reputation can be daunting and lengthy. "You never make money," she says.

Henning believes companies here should just concentrate on their customers and not overextend themselves with orders.

To protect themselves against future price hikes, some in the construction industry might elect to include "escalating costs" in their contracts, says Michael Reitmann, executive vice president of the Lee Building Industry Association.

Despite consumers' concerns that contractors have the license to gouge, people can ease their fears. "It's a very competitive market," he says.

-Phil Borchmann