Good news for home renovators - the price of lumber has decreased by 40 percent since its record high cost in May. Prices sit at below $1,000 per one thousand board feet after it peaked at $1,700 at its all-time high. Overall, in the last year, prices increased 175 percent, and while there was a dip, prices are still anticipated to remain higher than usual for the rest of the year.
Fort Lauderdale, FL -- (SBWIRE) -- 06/24/2021 -- The lowered prices are driven primarily because new home construction has fallen by 8.8 percent after it also reached a record high in March of 2021, along with a decrease in home-improvement sales by 8.1 percent. These dips came as a direct result of the dramatic increase in lumber prices. The rising number of sawmills and offers producing more lumber and a lowered demand were large causes of the spoke.
After COVID hit in 2020, sawmills practically halted all production and unloaded their inventory for fear of another housing crash that never happened. Instead, DIY projects, including home renovations that needed hard money lenders Florida, and a high number of millennials reaching home-buying years and zapping housing inventory, sent the industry into a frenzy.
While prices are dropping, the market is still hot. New construction (as of May 2021) is up nearly 50% than the previous year and 21% from 2019. In addition, lumber prices are finally seeing some give, but the costs are still much higher than in the pre-pandemic era, meaning you should still budget to pay more for home remodeling or flipping a house.