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After the Hurricanes that have devastated the gulf coast, there is a desperate need for builders to be in the area. Unfortunately, many of the local builders though are as devastated as the rest of the people in the region. They are missing their tools, trucks, equipment, and their own houses and offices. They are in no place to help.

The AP has more:

Roberta Stewart picks through the muck layering the first floor of her home, her bare legs splattered in mud, her eyes surveying the putrid mess from behind a gas mask. Now that hurricane Katrina’s floodwaters have ebbed, she asks, who will rebuild her home for her ?

“The (builder) I was going to use, who I trust, is in Fort Worth because he lost his house,” Stewart says. “I’ll have to find another contractor.”

That could be a tall order.

With hundreds or even thousands of builders wiped out by Katrina — their tools lost and workers scattered — homeowners looking to rebuild quickly are in for a shock.

The scope of home destruction is so sweeping that it will likely stretch rebuilding for years. It took more than a decade to reconstruct all the homes destroyed by hurricane Andrew after it hit Florida in 1992. Katrina destroyed 10 times as many homes.

The difficulty of rebuilding could be exacerbated because Gulf Coast contracting has long been the province of small, independent companies without the deep pockets to recover quickly. That has spurred out-of-state contractors to pour into the region, increasing competition for labour and driving up prices.

When the region’s contractors do get back on their feet, most of their time will be directed at repairing homes that are salvageable, not rebuilding ones that were destroyed, industry experts say.

About 9,000 contractors belonging to the National Association of Home Builders are based along the Gulf Coast. While there is no reliable estimate of how many of them were put out of commission by the storm, the group says it is likely in the thousands.

“They’re not in a position to help right now,” said Jerry Howard, the group’s chief executive.

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2. Real Estate Speculation Moves in to the Gulf coast States following hurricane Katrina & Rita
3. Real Estate Speculation Moves in to the Gulf coast States following hurricane Katrina & Rita
4. After Katrina, Thousands Decide Not To Rebuild
5. The Rebirth of New Orleans