Working in conjunction with the Santa Monica, California-based real estate firm Redcar Properties and Portland, Oregon-based architecture and design firm Lever Construction, Boston-based Shawmut Design and Construction is constructing a 75-foot-tall, 125,000 square-foot mixed-use office building in Los Angeles using cross-laminated timber.
Wood Markets News
Leading Economic Index® for U.S. Climbs Higher in October
The Conference Board, a non-partisan, not-for-profit think tank founded in 1916, released today (11-18-21) the Leading Economic Index® (LEI) for the U.S. in October. According to the report, the LEI for the U.S. increased by 0.9% in October to 118.3 (2016 = 100), following a 0.1% increase in September and a 0.7% increase in August.
Weekly Jobless Claims Continued to Decline in the Week Ending November 13, 2021
The U.S. Department of Labor is reporting that an additional 268,000 Americans made their initial filing for unemployment benefits during the week ending on Saturday, November 13, 2021 — a decrease of 1,000 from the previous week’s revised level. This is the lowest level for initial job claims since March 14, 2020, when it was 256,00.
Weekly Jobless Claims Continued to Decline in the Week Ending November 13, 2021
The U.S. Department of Labor is reporting that an additional 268,000 Americans made their initial filing for unemployment benefits during the week ending on Saturday November 13, 2021 — a decrease of 1,000 from the previous week’s revised level. This is the lowest level for initial job claims since March 14, 2020, when it was 256,00.
Mortgage Rates Climb Back Above 3% in the Week Ending November 18, 2021
Freddie Mac has released its Primary Mortgage Market Survey (PMMS) for the week ending November 10, 2021. The PMMS reports that the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 3.10% with an average 0.7 point up from last week when it averaged 2.98%. A year ago, at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 2.72%.
Building Permits Up, Housing Starts and Completions Lower in October
The U.S. Census Bureau reported on Wednesday (11-17-21) that privately‐owned housing starts in October were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR) of 1,520,000. This is -0.7% below the revised September rate of 1,530,000 but is 0.4% above the October 2020 rate of 1,514,000. Single-family housing starts in October were at a rate of 1,039,000, which is -3.9% below the revised September figure.
Proposed B.C. Forest Tenure Amendments Aims to Make Major Changes
The B.C. government is moving forward with its far-reaching measures to remake the forest tenure system. The measures include reducing existing company cutting rights, paying compensation, and reassigning logging rights to Indigenous and community forests. It also is requiring transparency by requiring area-based tenure holders to share forest inventory information with the chief forester
Single-Family Built-For-Rent Construction Starts Hits Quarterly Volume Record in Q3 2021
Further analysis of the U.S. Census Bureau’s Quarterly Starts and Completions by Purpose and Design, provided by the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), reveals that the number of single-family built-for-rent (SFBFR) construction starts reached its highest quarterly volume on record in Q3 2021. During Q3 2021, there were approximately 16,000 single-family built-for-rent starts.
Canadian Consumer Price Index Up Month-Over-Month and Year-Over-Year in October
Statistics Canada (StatsCan) reported on Wednesday (11-17-21) that the Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose 4.7% on a year-over-year basis in October, up from a 4.4% increase in September. October’s increase was the largest increase since February 2003. Excluding energy, the CPI rose 3.3% year-over-year, matching September’s increase.
Mortgage Applications Decline in the Week Ending November 12, 2021
According to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Weekly Mortgage Application Survey (WMAS), for the week ending November 12, 2021, the Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, decreased -2.8% on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier. On an unadjusted basis, the Index decreased -4% compared with the previous week.