Comparing Costs from City to City

Comparing Costs from City to City

The construction cost indices can be used to compare costs between cities, because the index is developed
identically for each city. The index is an indicator of the relative difference. The cost difference between
cities for identical buildings or projects in a different city can be found by using the appropriate construction
cost indices (CCI). The procedure is as follows:


Comparing Costs from Time to Time
The cost indices can be used to compare costs for the same facility at different points in time. Using the
historical cost indices of two points in time, one can calculate the difference in costs between the two
points in time. It is necessary to know the cost and the historical index for time B and the historical cost
index for time A.


Modifying Costs for Various Cities and Times
The two prior uses can be accomplished simultaneously, when it is desired to use cost information from
another city and time for a second city and time estimate. Care must be exercised to establish the correct
relationships. The following example illustrates the principle.