Lumber prices are tanking, at a 9-month low!

Lumber prices have been on a steep decline as a combination of rising interest rates, record-high inflation and a red-hot housing market translate into fewer people being able to afford to buy their own home.

Prices are down about 50% year-to-date, recently dropping to their lowest point in 9 months trading below the $600-per-thousand-board-feet mark. This marks a stark turnaround from 12 months ago, when prices hit a record $1,733, as pent-up demand for construction and home improvement after the pandemic fueled a speculative frenzy.

Link to article:
Lumber Prices Tank As US Housing Affordability Sinks to 17-Year Lows (businessinsider.com)

 

So Home Depot's paper mache' 2x4's are heading back down to $2.50/piece?
Plywood is not $50 & $60 each?
Sca

 

Read something the other day that 1 year ago and today, the house you bought last year at median price at median interest will cost double today. Median price has gone up and interest rates have doubled. Think about that!

 

About a year ago just out of curiosity I decided to price out the lumber that we used in our addition (built in 2018-2019). Our lumber cost back then was between $18-20k including the 12x36 deck. Last year when I priced it again it was roughly $35k+ .

It's nice to see prices declining again.

 

Not to the consumer yet, I just got a materials list for my next project. $50 for a sheet of 5/8" ply still

 

^^^. This !!
Last week
2x4x10. $11.xx
2x6x8. $7.xx

with gas at $5 a gallon not driving 3/4 ton around to price shop

 

Just buy an EV, the gas is free !!

 

Yup. 14x20 deck we plan to build (not at the prices where they are now, was going to do in 2019 but ran out of time) I’ll just strap everything down to the roof. It’ll be fine!

 

You strap it down, but the retailers strap it on...we are still getting %@#*!

 

Just redecked my trailer. 11 16’ 2x8. $330. You think that’s a little high? Probably didn’t have to do the whole trailer, just had 1 plank a huge knot fell out of and it had about 2 feet of the plank pretty weak. Had one plank I took a chunk out of with a backhoe but wasn’t a big deal.

 

Update now. Lumber at $500 per thousand board ft of lumber .

Lumber futures are down 62% amid a 'Great Reset'—here’s when DIYers can expect the best deals

This article says takes a couple months to reach the consumer as far as retail prices.

I'm building a wood/ hog wire fence to keep our pets in our yard. I've got to buy PT 4x4's and 2x4's for this project.

 

8' PT ground contact 2x4 is $6.03
6' PT ground contact 4x4 is 10.32

10' PT above ground use 2x6 is $9.51

 

Time to get materials for the next projects or two. I wonder how long this will last....not so much prices, but availability, economy.....
Sca

 

I'd buy 8 8footers for 2 new wood racks. Plus 6 cinder blocks.

It still has to come down a few $'s before I buy.

 

FWIW... Maybe you have discovered a better mousetrap but I do not use 2x4's, myself anymore. I like landscape timbers; they appear to be somewhat close to 4x4s but with rounded sides on two sides. They are much stouter than 2x4's. I also use three cinder blocks instead of six. But you may have a different design. With mine, a cinder block on the ground, one eight feet away and one in the middle. Then two 8ft landscape timbers laying atop. Makes a dandy rack and it is CHEEP. You can also put 2x4's rising vertical/slanted from the ends but you can also just criss-cross, crib the ends of the stacks. These comments are based on stacking 8 ft long, 4 ft high, 16" splits. Which is exactly one face cord or rick, one-third of a cord. My cinder blocks (concrete blocks) are the ones about 6" to 8" square, I don't know exactly their dimensions... very common blocks that before the price rise were about 2 bucks or less each. I dunno what they are now.

 

Sounds like what I do. 8ft long. Like in the picture below.

I'll price landscape timbers for the 8ft runs. Maybe cheaper than 2x4.

 

No, about twice as much from what I've seen

 

Who knew?

 

$4.79 at Menards near me for an 8 foot treated landscape timber.

 

I have used both cedar and treated landscape timbers in ground contact situations with gutter screws to lock them together. Both rot fairly quickly at the screws! Not a fan