Dive summary:

• The recovery appears to be in full gear in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area, with home building enjoying the resurgence and buyers who want a bargain wishing they had bought earlier.
• The Multiple Listing Service says that new homes sold through it are going for an average of $150 per square foot, which is 7% higher than the mark a year ago.
• Builders like Jeff Schoenwetter of JMS Custom Homes say the reasons are that a shortage of workers is driving up wages of the remaining labor pool and builders are stretching the ability of mills and manufacturers to supply materials because they could not ramp up from the recession as fast as builders could crank up construction.

From the article:

Houses are also bigger and more expensive to build now than they used to be, which is adding to the strain on labor and materials.  ...