National Association of Home Builders Chairman, Chuck Fowke, reported that NAHB Senior Officers recently held talks with members of the White House National Economic Council to discuss the impact soaring lumber prices are having on the housing industry.
Since mid-April, the composite price of lumber increased more than 160 percent. This surge is adding approximately $16,000 to the price of a new single-family home and more than $6,000 to the average new apartment, according to the latest NAHB economic analysis.
NAHB Chief Economist Robert Dietz provided an analysis of the market situation and said that escalating lumber prices in recent months are due to the fact there has not been enough domestic lumber production for a variety of reasons. Additionally, according to the NAHB report, the extreme lumber price volatility has been exacerbated by tariffs averaging more than 20 percent on Canadian lumber imports into the U.S. market. Visit www.nahb.org for more information.
