Good news was reported almost across the board in April for financial outlays in construction. Overall amounts were up 1.8 percent; gaining back the ground lost from the 1.7 percent drop in March.

One of the best sectors was home improvement expenditures, which saw an 11.6 percent jump. That helped move total residential construction spending forward 4.4 percent in spite of little momentum in single-family construction. The multifamily sector however was up 3.6 percent.

Non-residential spending remained about the same for the second month in a row but the office and lodging sectors had an uptick. Public expenditures saw a 1.3 percent decrease though transportation rose.

Overall, construction outlays are now 6.6 percent above the amounts registered this time last year.