There’s a lot of news lately about immigrants & immigration lately, which is not exactly what I’m talking about here…right now. 
Anyway, It turns out: Immigration is a major factor in new construction for residential housing. According to a study by Harvard ( https://www.jchs.harvard.edu/blog/homebuilding-and-remodeling-depend-immigrant-labor-major-metros ), the Boston market’s immigrant workers(Legal & illegal I presume) make up about 34% of labor manpower. I’ve heard from several sources that builders are feeling the pinch of their subcontractors disappearing after being picked up. That lost labor & the downtime while replacements are sought, costs the builders & the homeowners in real dollars & time. The builders get no notice that an employee has gotten picked up either. They just disappear. Spouses & kids have no more information than the contractors. With 1/3 of the labor force at risk, this is a looming personnel crisis that extends deadlines, increases costs & results in a lot of dissatisfied customers & ticked off builders. Not to mention the constant stress & fear of waiting to see the flashing lights approaching(or not seeing them first) on the workers themselves. I’m going out on a limb here to suggest that home building isn’t the only industry affected this way. Healthcare, manufacturing, farming, etc. are also feeling the effects. As are we at the grocery store and more.
The study was critiqued by Chicago Agent Magazine here: https://chicagoagentmagazine.com/2026/01/14/immigration-construction-labor/? . They came to the logical solution, which I agree with 100%. The uncertainty & fear punctuated by actually disappearing workers are having an immediate impact on new & existing home construction with delayed completion dates, rising costs to builders and customers, HR headaches, customer complaints & increased consumer pain from the worsening housing shortages.
Like most people who aren’t Native American, my family immigrated to the US. They came in the early 1900 from Ireland, just in time to fight for the US in WW1. Jobs were scarce & discrimination was plentiful. Still, they made their mark, contributed mightily to their community & new country. A beset immigrant community was essential to the founding of the Knights of Columbus about the same time. I’ve worked with a lot of people who are targeted here. By & large, the ones I know are very good people. They’re just workers, family men, many of them very, very skilled. I try really hard to be apolitical in my social media. Sometimes an issue becomes unavoidable & you have to say something. End of sermon, as promised. 
(but you know how I would have finished it off.)
I know this post is hardly uplifting, but try to have fun this week anyway.
Lew McConkey, Realtor/Notary
Brook Realty, Serving Whitman Hanson & Surrounding Towns
(781)252-9789
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