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SHORTAGES OF FRAMING LUMBER

MORE WIDESPREAD THAN EVER

Shortages of framing lumber are now more
widespread than at any time since NAHB Share of Builders Reporting Shortages*
began tracking the issue in 1994, according (% of Respondents Who Purchase the Material)
to results from the May 2018 survey for the

NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index.

More than 30%
of single-family …the May 2018 reading
builders responding
to the surveys special of 31%
questions in May is the highest
reported this shortage, shortage percentage
outdistancing for framing lumber
the other 22 listed
building products and
materials by a wide margin. In second place were
trusses (with a shortage reported by 24% of builders),
followed by lightweight steel and OSB (at 20% each)
and plywood (at 19%).
The survey taken last year revealed a much better
picture: The shortage percentages for these items *Either serious or some shortage
were significantly lower – 21% for framing lumber and
under 15% for all other products/materials. 2004, when the nation was in the midst of a housing
boom and the annual rate of housing starts often
It is probably not a coincidence that the top five
items on the 2018 list are made of lumber or steel, as exceeded 2 million (compared to the current rate of
each of these building materials have been targeted about 1.3 million).
by the Trump administration with new import tariffs NAHB JULY 2018
over the past year.
As noted above, the May 2018 reading of 31% is
the highest shortage percentage for framing lumber
since NAHB incorporated the question into its HMI
survey in September 1994. The second-highest
reading of 24% was recorded in October

14 AUGUST 2018 | GREATER SAN ANTONIO BUILDERS ASSOCIATION