Over the first seven months of 2019, the total number of single-family permits issued in the US year-to-date nationwide reached 496,726. On a year-over-year basis, this is a -4.7% decline over the July 2018 level of 521,438. Year-to-date to July 2019, single-family permits reported declines in all four regions, said the US National Association of Home…

Below are some cogent thoughts on the current lumber market today, from an economist at Seeking Alpha:https://seekingalpha.com/article/4291207-lumber-sits-waits-wood-follows-price-futures “Lumber is just below its midpoint for 2019“, Seeking Alpha. So far in 2019, the price of nearby lumber futures has traded on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange in a range from US$286.10 to US$453.90 per 1,000 board feet.…

Prices paid for goods used in residential construction in the US decreased by 0.8% in August (not seasonally adjusted) according to the latest Producer Price Index (PPI) released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, said the National Association of Home Builders Eye on Housing Tuesday. Building materials prices in the US have declined an average of 0.1%…

Data from the BLS Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) indicate that US construction job openings increased in July, after a declines off a cycle high count for April, said the National Association of Home Builders Eye on Housing Tuesday. The estimated number of US job openings in the construction sector increased to 373,000 in July…

National home price appreciation in the US continued to slow in June. Three metro areas, including New York, Miami and Seattle, experienced home price declines for the month. The Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price Index, reported by S&P Dow Jones Indices Thursday slowed to a 1.9% seasonally adjusted annual growth rate in June, from 2.4% in May.…

Western Spruce-Pine-Fir KD 2×4 #2&btr wholesaler price this week: US$376 mfbm (net FOB #sawmill) Wholesaler price of benchmark North American #construction framing #softwood dimension #lumber item Western Spruce-Pine-Fir KD 2×4 #2&btr rebounds +1.6%, or +$6, this week: to US$376 mfbm (net FOB #sawmill) from $370 last week. #building #housing #woodhttps://madisonsreport.com/lumber-prices/

The price of benchmark lumber commodity Western Spruce-Pine-Fir KD 2×4 #2&Btr last week gained $4, or 1.2%, to close the week at US$346 mfbm compared to $342 the week before.

According to estimates from the US Housing and Urban Development and the US Commerce Department, total housing starts in the US were down -4% in July, but that decline was concentrated in the multifamily sector as forward-looking rental demand softened on gains for for-sale housing affordability.Multifamily starts (2+ unit production) were off -16% in July,…