UP, UP AND AWAY SKYROCKETING LUMBER COSTS IMPACT HOUSING MARKET written by TRISH ERBE SCOZZARI photography by DANIEL SULLIVAN
TODAY’S LUMBER PRICES are all over the board. “We don’t know week to week what prices will be,” says Tim Johnson, manager of Thomae Lumber of Billings. “Every week we see an increase,” adds Wayne Schaefer, outside sales rep for the company. With record-setting increases in wood products, it’s challenging for builders and Do-It-Yourselfers to complete projects, let alone start new ones. “And that’s if you can even find lumber,” says Tim. “What you
buy today may not be available on the open market. And with trucking, it might be a month to a month and a-half away.” One of the hardest pieces of lumber to get a hold of is Oriented Strand Board (OSB), probably the most recognized and certainly the most common building material used. OSB hit an all-time high this spring, when the price of a 4-by-8 sheet soared from $10 to $65. “The numbers are staggering,” Tim says. “Nationwide, OSB is up 600 percent compared to last year at this time and lumber is up 200 percent per thousand board feet.” “Never in history have we seen increases like this when comparing bids to six months ago or to last year. It’s due to availability. Normally, this time of year we have three times more (inventory) than we have. We have to be careful where our stock goes as our loyal customers come first,” says Tim. He’s thankful Thomae Lumber is a part of the Mead Lumber family. With 42 locations, the company has “good buying power.” Home Builder Jarrett Smith counts on this partnership. Like many builders, he and his company, Branding Iron Construction, continue to build homes in the valley. He’s also coming face-to-face with how the dramatic increase in lumber costs changes the dynamics for new-build homes. “It’s really hard,” he says, “as I have to explain to the owner whose house is currently under construction it’ll be an additional $8,000. This limits the extras going into the home. They may not get a fence as the
84
YVW MAGAZINE
