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US FHFA House Price Index History vs Softwood Lumber Prices: 2007 – March 2019
The US Home Price Index, released by the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), rose at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of +1.3% in March, following the +5.3% increase in February. On a year-over-year basis, the FHFA Home Price NSA Index rose by +5% in March. It was the lowest annual growth rate since January 2015, confirming the…
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Softwood Lumber Prices Slide Downward as More Sawmill Closures are Announced
Confusion reigned only more last week in the North America construction framing dimension softwood lumber market as demand was very soft for what is normally the big home building season in the US. This week major producers announced further permanent closures and curtailments for British Columbia sawmills; due both to high log costs while lumber…
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US Spending on Residential Improvements: March 2019
According to the US National Association of Home Builders, Americans spend more than US$200 billion on home improvements each year. The most recent data from Construction Spending showed that spending on residential improvements fell to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of US$173 billion in March 2019, down by -3.1% over February estimate, and was -14.1% lower than a year…
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Spot Lumber Prices … a New Low?
An interesting question among North American construction framing dimension softwood lumber wholesalers and traders Friday: “Spot #lumber prices lowest in how many years?” –– veteran softwood lumber trader It might be a difficult time right now for producers and sellers of Canadian and US softwood lumber, but it’s nothing compared to 2009 and certainly not…
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US Pending Home Sales: April 2019
The US Pending Home Sales Index (PHSI), reported by the National Association of Realtors (NAR), is a forward-looking indicator based on signed contracts. The PHSI fell -1.5% from 105.9 in March to 104.3 in April, and was still -2% below the level of one year ago, marking the sixteenth straight month of declines on an annualized basis.…
