Following a meeting with senior leaders from the National Association of Home Builders, Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said Friday she was “committed” to finding ways the federal government could help alleviate a severe shortage of lumber in the U.S.
“The residential construction industry is facing serious challenges because of supply chain constraints and the impact on home building, especially with respect to affordable housing,” Raimondo said in a statement. “Today was a productive, positive conversation to begin to address these challenges. We take these issues seriously, and my staff and I are committed to continuing to work with all stakeholders, including reviewing relevant data and conducting analysis to identify targeted actions the government or industry can take to address supply chain constraints. I want to thank the NAHB and its leaders for constructive engagement on this issue and working with us to find a path forward.”
In its own, separate, statement, NAHB declared that the Biden administration had pledged its “full support” for fixing the supply chain logjams.
“Commerce Secretary Raimondo understands that high lumber costs are adding tens of thousands of dollars to the price of a new home,” NAHB Chairman Chuck Fowke said in a statement. “She heard our stories and acknowledged that she is concerned – and that President Biden is concerned – about the effect of the lumber price problem on the broader economy.”
The ongoing shortage of lumber, coupled with exploding demand from homebuilders and other developers reacting to the 2020 home sales boom, has caused the sale price of the average newly-built home in America to grow by $35,872 alone, NAHB estimated last month. The average new-construction apartment building would also have to add $119 per month to a unit’s rent to compensate, the association’s economists said. Supply chain problems across the housing industry are suppressing production even as record numbers of prospective homebuyers search for new houses.
While much of the shortage can be traced to lower sawmill production and timber harvesting as companies misread the COVID-19 pandemic as heralding a broader recession that would harm the housing industry, the NAHB has also a used the issue to push for lower tariffs on imported Canadian timber, going so far as to say the Biden administration “does not care about the plight of American home buyers and renters.” The association has argued that imported lumber can help make up for the shortfall in domestic production.
