The most recent U.S. Census Bureau’s Quarterly Sales by Price and Financing with analysis provided by the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) reveals that conventional loans financed the largest share of new home sales since 2018. The share of sales backed by conventional loans in the Q1 2021 increased 2.8 percentage points (quarter-over-quarter) to 71.6% and 2.1 percentage points since Q1 2020.
Wood Markets News
S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller Index Reports Annual Home Prices Gained 12% in February 2021
The S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price NSA Index, which covers all nine U.S. Census divisions, reported that home prices experienced a 12.0% annual gain in February 2021, up from 11.2% in January. The 10-City Composite annual increase came in at 11.7%, up from 10.9% in the previous month.
Shares of Mortgages in Forbearance Decline for Eighth Straight Week in Week Ending April 18, 2021
The latest Mortgage Banker Association’s (MBA) Forbearance and Call Survey reports that the total number of loans now in forbearance decreased by 1 basis point from 4.50% of servicers’ portfolio volume in the prior week to 4.49% as of April 18, 2021. According to MBA’s estimate, 2.25 million homeowners are in forbearance plans.
Consumer Confidence Index Climbs Higher in April
The Conference Board, a non-partisan, not-for-profit think tank founded in 1916, released today (4-27-21) their Consumer Confidence Index® (CCI) for April 2021. The CCI climbed higher in April, this following a strong monthly gain in March. The Index now stands at 121.7 (1985=100), up from 109.0 in March.
Chilean Plywood Exports up 1.1% Year-Over-Year in 2020
Chilean plywood export volumes in 2020 totaled 451,920t. The positive development in Q4 helped export volumes to post a year-over-year increase of 1.1%. US customers purchased a total volume of 234,451t Chilean radiata pine plywood at a value of US$193.3m last year.
NewLife Forest Restoration Holds Ribbon Cutting Ceremony for its new Bellemont Arizona Sawmill Facility
NewLife Forest Restoration, on Friday (4-23-21) held a ribbon cutting ceremony at its new 425,000 square foot sawmill facility in Bellemont Arizona. NewLife currently holds the largest contract with the United States Forest Service for logging operations associated with the Four Forest Restoration Initiative, also called 4FRI.
Redfin Report Confirms Demand for Housing Continues to Exceed Limited Supply
Redfin, the Seattle-based, technology-powered real estate brokerage is reporting that year-over-year, for the 4-week period ending Sunday, April 18, 2021, the median home-sale price increased 18% to $344,625, setting yet another all-time record high. Providing further evidence of a housing market where demand greatly exceeds supply.
The Ongoing Pandemic Continues to Increase the Appeal of Homeownership
According to the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) Q1 2021, Housing Trends Report (HTR), 16% of American adults are considering purchasing a home within the next 12-months. That is a 6-point increase over 2020, and marks the third (and largest) year-over-year gain in the share of prospective buyers in the HTR’s history.
New Residential Single-Family Home Sales Soar in March
The U.S. Census Bureau reported that new residential single-family home sales for March 2021 were at a SAAR of 1,021,000, according to estimates. This is 20.7% above the revised February rate of 846,000 and is 66.8% above the March 2020 estimate of 612,000.
Biewer Lumber Company Breaks Ground on their New State-of-the-Art Sawmill in Winona Mississippi
Biewer Lumber Company, with corporate headquarters in St. Clair Michigan, held a groundbreaking ceremony on Wednesday (4-21-21) at the site of their new state-of-the-art sawmill in Winona, Montgomery County, Mississippi. When operating at full capacity the mill will provide over a hundred new jobs in the area.