Nonresidential PlanningContinues to Normalize
BOSTON, MA–March6,2026—The Dodge Momentum Index (DMI), issued by Ҵýapp declined 7.3% in February to 250.0 (2000=100) from the downwardly revised January reading of 269.8. Over the month, commercial planning fell 8.9%, and institutional planning momentum slowed by 4.0%.
“Planning momentumcontinuedto normalizein Februaryaftera surge in activityin the back half of 2025,”said Sarah Martin, Associate Director of Forecasting at Ҵýapp. “Elevated risks around costs, labor, and geopolitics will continue to constrainbuilderconfidence in the near-term but the robust planning pipeline suggests an acceleration in construction spending in 2027.”
On the commercial side,planning momentum slowed across all commercial sectors apart fromwarehouses.Within institutional planning,all sectors slowed down with public buildings facing the largest contraction.Despite widespread declines, project momentum for retail stores, recreational buildings, datacentersand healthcare facilitiesremainelevated.Year-over-year, the DMI was up18.7% when compared toFebruary2025. The commercial segment was up12.3%(+4.4%when data centers are removed)andthe institutional segment was up34.0% over the same period.
A total of23projects valued at $100 million or moreenteredplanning throughoutFebruary.The largest commercial projectsincludedthe $500 millionCyrusOne Data Center in Whitney, Texas, the $448 million TX12 Data Center in San Antonio,Texasand Buildings 5 and 6 of the QTS DFW2 Data Center in Wilmer, Texas – each valued at $290 million.The largest institutional projects to enter planning were the$400 million Orange County Convention Center Grand Concourse expansion(Phase 5A)in Orlando, Florida,a $254 million school replacement project in Upper Marlboro, Maryland, and the $250 million Langley F-22 Dormitory Building in Mclean, Virginia.
The DMI is a monthly measurebased on the three-month movingvalue ofnonresidential building projectsgoing intoplanning, shown to lead construction spending for nonresidential buildings by a full yearto18 months.


