Experts Say Cost of Lumber is Going Down, Could Be a Good Sign

Financial experts say we should have paid attention to the lumber market two years ago during the pandemic when lumber was hard to find and prices skyrocketed. We learned then that demand was way greater than supply and thus prices spiked higher than ever.

Last year, lumber futures skyrocketed above $1600 per thousand board feet, according to NASDAQ. The price per thousand board feet was just over $400 before the pandemic. When money was infused into the markets with government handouts and with people spending less time traveling and more time at home, the demand for lumber exploded and with demand high and supply low, prices reached never before seen record highs.

Financial experts say, we should have read the tea leaves then and realized supply and production shortages were on the horizon and that indicated the possibility of inflation. We didn't seem to pay attention to that indicator then, and today, the lumber market is sending another message, and we're not paying attention once again.

Right now, lumber prices have plummeted since the beginning of the year. Currently, the price per thousand board feet of lumber is at $652. The number is higher than pre pandemic, but significantly lower than pandemic inflated prices.

Finance experts say, we should pay attention to the lumber numbers once again. The fact that demand has tempered and supply chains are leveling out, the lowering prices could be an indicator that inflation may have peaked.

Experts at Fortune say, it's still too early to tell but the lowering lumber prices are a great indicator that market stability might be just over the horizon.