Why Lumber Prices Are So High + What It Means For Homebuilders

1 in 4 homes for sale is newly built, driven by fierce competition to snag an existing home. The largest contributor to hefty home price tags is the cost of building supplies.

Lumber tariffs kicked off supply-based price increases ~a year ago. Then, along came COVID. Assuming that housing demand would halt, homebuilders, lumber producers, + others were caught off guard by the roaring demand and the need to hire, invest in additional equipment, etc., all impacting cost. “The surge in lumber prices in the past year has added $35,872 to the price of an average new single-family home,” according to the NAHB.

And then there is land. Prices per single lot is up 11% year-over-year, creating a land grab as builders try to keep up with demand. Ali Wolf, chief economist with Zonda notes that despite demand, the new housing market is underperforming to its full potential.

Potential aside, homebuilders are thriving, and lots of dreams of ownership are coming true. C+C is the nation’s largest land surveyor focused on production homebuilding. To address the volume among our partners, C+C currently completes 11k + surveys a month. We use technology to manage growth and meet the needs of our industry-leading partners, in the low times and the high.  

Full article: https://cnb.cx/3vTdn8C