At the time of this writing, lumber suppliers across the West Coast reported mixed reviews about the market.
In California, a lumber supplier that said the company keeps their “operation lean and mean” noted, that “it’s still order to order. It’s not slow and it’s not real fast. It’s kind of right in the middle.” He added that the company is doing the same as it was six months ago, but they have “no complaints and we must make sure we have the lumber for when the customers call because when they want something, they’re ready for it right then. That’s just how the market is out here.”
His company offers Walnut, Hickory and White Oak in all grades in 4/4 thickness and FAS No. 1 and No. 2. He stated that White Oak and Walnut were their best sellers when this interview was conducted.
They sell to flooring manufacturers, those that install the flooring and lumberyards. He noted that customers are “not as busy as they’d like to be,” citing that the summer season and the upcoming election are “playing into it.”
In Washington, a lumber spokesperson said that things are “a little slow,” and compared to six months ago, business is the same. As for the cause of the slowdown, he explained that even though he’s “not sure,” he said that “we could go after interest rates and home building” in addition to consumers being “more in debt and not having as much money to spend.”
The company markets basically all standard, Eastern hardwoods, which include Red and White Oak, Poplar, Beech, Hard and Soft Maple and Basswood. “On occasion, we sell all the grades,” he said but their customers buy mostly 4/4 through 6/4. Their high-end products such as Rift White Oak, in addition to “very nice” Walnut, were selling the best at the time of this writing, he added. Despite this movement, he noted that the “normal stuff isn’t doing very well right now” and that even though walnut is selling well, the customers that purchase the high grades aren’t buying more than usual.
They sell to millwork and flooring manufacturers, distributors and to other mills. As for the market for his customers’ products, he noted that all he could get them to say was that “it’s just slow and people are moving from job to job.”
Another lumber supplier in California reported that the market is “a little slower than it has been. That’s just kind of a Reader’s Digest version. We deal with a lot of lumberyards and they say they’re a little slow. But people seem positive about it. They feel like they have work coming.”
Despite this positivity other people in the industry have for upcoming work, the supplier commented that the slowdown is not only because work isn’t coming, but also because of insurance and interest rates, “over here in California, when people want to sell their houses, they have trouble buying insurance, which they need to have for mortgages and that’s an extra price. It’s almost like paying more for a mortgage. With the higher interest rates, people aren’t taking home equity loans to do improvements.”
They handle “pretty much all the usual suspects from the Appalachian region,” he said. They sell Cherry, Hard and Soft Maple, Walnut, Birch and Red and White Oak. He explained that while White Oak is “doing well,” it’s “hard to get these days and is three times the price of Red Oak. We always feel like the White Oak bubble is going to burst one of these days and things will turn.”
As for their customer base, they deal with lumberyards and “any kind of wood products manufacturer.” He mentioned that they talk to their customers “all the time” and that the lumberyards that “deal with the builders are a little bit slower.”
