Replies

1. 
   user-1118538293 | Apr 21, 2022 08:24pm | #1

   There kind of is a shortage of trees, actually. The Mountain Pine Beetle is brutalizing the softwood lumber industry. I don't know all the dynamics of how a beetle that specializes in several pine species disrupts the whole softwoods sector, but it appears to be playing a significant role.
   It appears that climate change is a major culprit, with milder winters leading to an explosion in beetle populations.
   Other factors: demand for housing, trade "dispute" with Canada.

2. 
   esch5995 | Apr 22, 2022 01:15am | #2

   You obviously live in the back country without access to media or the internet. Lumber prices skyrocketed at the beginning of the pandemic, had a brief fallback last summer and then shot back up again. It was widely covered in all modern forms of media. You can pick your reason, a lack of workers, rising fuel costs, a never before seen perfect storm of both home improvement and new home construction, Trump Era tariffs on Canadian wood imports etc. Whatever the cause the days of $1.96 2x4s are nothing but a fond memory like 32¢ gasoline, yeah I'm pretty old.

3. 
   mikaol | Apr 22, 2022 10:00am | #3

   Heck, I remember gas at a $.25/gallon. Not political, but price-gouging is always prevalent during any shortage. I remember gas lines & gas at $8/gallon.

4. 
   Kayleigh8 | Apr 23, 2022 07:18am | #4

   products prices typically fluctuate more than most goods, because homebuilding can move up or down much faster than sawmill capacity can. Wood products have other uses that are more stable, such as non-residential construction, crates and pallets, but new housing is the largest usage, followed by home repairs and remodeling, and both of those activities are highly cyclical