On Friday afternoon, construction crews were piecing together what will soon be one of the newest homes on South Bend’s north side. It’s hard work in the hot summer heat, but for these workers it’s a much-appreciated job in an industry where work has rarely been harder to find.

“This is the worst I’ve seen it in forty years,” said Andy Place, a local builder and president of the Indiana Builder’s Association. He said building permits are down as much as 75 percent.

Nationally, construction of single family homes in May saw the biggest drop in nearly 20 years.

“You’ve got a lot of people who just can’t afford to do this – whether they’ve lost a job or they’re concerned about losing a job,” said Place. “I think consumer confidence is the biggest issue.”

There’s also the end of the government tax incentives for homebuyers. Sales surged as people rushed to take advantage, but industry officials say that ended when the credit did on April 30.

“That ate up a lot of our market – what we’ll call our spring and summer market,” Place said.

The end of the credit has also slowed existing home sales. Sandi Cather, a managing real estate broker with Cressy and Everett, said the St. Joseph County Multiple Listing Service showed home sales were up 5.5 percent through April, but by the end of May sales had fallen 16.8 percent for the year.

“May was rough,” said Cather.

Today, builders like Andy Place are looking forward to fall when they expect to see an improvement. And in an industry with nearly 30 percent unemployment, it can’t come soon enough. They’re hoping buyers will take advantage of low interest rates and the low cost of materials it takes to build.

“It’s going to be gradual,” Place said. “That’s for sure.”

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