I don't understand why some builders insist so strongly on using lumber that they will pay these crazy prices or cancel the construction. The community of people in the building industry, I guess, are just low-hanging fruit. Their smarter brothers and sisters went to law or medical school, and only the dummies went into construction. Their minds seem not to be open to reality. Steel framing works as well for hanging gypsum wallboard and the basic outside wall construction is a lot stronger when it is made from brick and/or concrete block as from wood 2 x 4s. There is no reason to chase the price of lumber higher and higher, and certainly no reason to cancel construction projects because of the runaway lumber prices. In fact, in many old world foreign countries, no one ever considers building houses or office buildings with wood. It is considered a relatively weak, shoddy material that can early get worm/termite eaten, and simply doesn't hold up over the centuries they expect their stuff to last.
Once the Covid cash gets used up both lumber and housing prices have to pull back. It's unhealthy right now. Fortunately we don't have the zeronpercent down mortgages out there like in the past so if people are 10-15% underwaters they most likely won't walk away from their houses. But they'll have to sit tight for a couple years to get back to even. There are some bargains coming up in about a year. You're crazy to buy a house now unless you absolutely have to. You're buying just about at the peak.
I don't understand why some builders insist so strongly on using lumber that they will pay these crazy prices or cancel the construction. The community of people in the building industry, I guess, are just low-hanging fruit. Their smarter brothers and sisters went to law or medical school, and only the dummies went into construction. Their minds seem not to be open to reality. Steel framing works as well for hanging gypsum wallboard and the basic outside wall construction is a lot stronger when it is made from brick and/or concrete block as from wood 2 x 4s. There is no reason to chase the price of lumber higher and higher, and certainly no reason to cancel construction projects because of the runaway lumber prices. In fact, in many old world foreign countries, no one ever considers building houses or office buildings with wood. It is considered a relatively weak, shoddy material that can early get worm/termite eaten, and simply doesn't hold up over the centuries they expect their stuff to last.
Call me 619 332 1188
Timber grower
Call me Harry Cooper 619 332 1188
Once the Covid cash gets used up both lumber and housing prices have to pull back. It's unhealthy right now. Fortunately we don't have the zeronpercent down mortgages out there like in the past so if people are 10-15% underwaters they most likely won't walk away from their houses. But they'll have to sit tight for a couple years to get back to even. There are some bargains coming up in about a year. You're crazy to buy a house now unless you absolutely have to. You're buying just about at the peak.