I left Lowes with 10 2x12’s the other day and a guy walked by and said, “I hope you’re packing. Yer gonna need it.” ;)
Oddly, their price that day for 10 and 12 footers was the same. I only needed 10 and 8 footers, but I also need some four foot lengths. The 12’s actually cost less per foot than the 8’s. Probably should have bought a lot more.
For my job, I do a lot of employee training at lumberyards and home centers for the building material manufacturer who employs me.
A couple weeks ago, I was doing some product demo’s at a lumberyard. One of my demonstrations utilizes two pieces of 2X4 glued together.
I forgot to cut extra’s so I used a torch to burn the old adhesive off.
It made a perfect joke when I was using scorched 2X4 pieces. “Even I can’t afford lumber.”
Locally, as of this morning, 1/2 4x8 plywood cost me $50.40 + tax at Lowes. Last August they were $27 and change. Fortunately, we got 90% of the lumber we needed for our project last August.
Some of the lumbers we are seeing are up over 40%.
The problem is that people tend to focus on just aspect of the situation, and ignore other critical components. As it relates to lumber, the trucking industry is slammed right now. Too much product to move and not nearly enough drivers to move it.
There are also challenges in the ports which is causing delays in imported products, including wood.
The real concern is that when these bubbles burst, and there seems to be several, the cascading effect will make 2008 look like a high school audition Far too many people in leadership roles in companies are just cashing in right now on the easy money; and won’t have a clue what to do when it dramatically slows down, let alone stops. High volumes has a tendency to make businesses complacent since no one ever wants to think about the negatives, and volume can hide a lot of problems.