The National Interagency Fire Center reported today (9-27-21) there are 65 large wildfires burning nationally on over 3,154,071 acres. Two new large fires were being reported on Sunday (9-26-21), with one located in Oklahoma and the other in Texas.
Wood Markets News
Real Estate Values Moved Significantly Higher in Q2 of 2021
According to the latest Federal Reserve Z.1 Financial Accounts of the United States (i.e., the “Flow of Funds”) with analysis provided by the National Association of Home Builders, in Q2 of 2021 the aggregate market value of all owner-occupied real estate in the U.S. registered its largest quarterly increase in the past 21 years of data.
Housing Affordability Slips Further in Q3 of 2021
According to ATTOM™ Data Solutions, the Irvine, California-based nationwide provider of property data, the sharp and continued rise in property values continues to thwart the average wage earner in the U.S. ability to purchase a single-family home.
Port Congestion Continues to Create Major Pinch-Points in the Supply Chain
According to Freightwave.com and American Shipper, as of Tuesday (9-21-21) there were approximately 70 container ships loaded with cargo waiting at anchor or drifting off the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach. While the numbers fluctuate from day to day, there were 70 container ships in the queue on Monday with total capacity of 432,909 twenty-foot equivalent units.
New Residential Single-Family Home Sales Up Month-Over-Month but Down Year-Over-Year in August
On Friday (9-24-21), The U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development jointly announced that new residential single-family home sales for August 2021 were at a SAAR of 740,000, according to estimates. This is 1.5% above the revised July rate of 729,000 but is -24.3% below the August 2020 estimate of 977,000.
Federal Housing Finance Agency Announces COVID-19 Forbearance to Continue for Qualifying Multifamily Property Owners
Scheduled to expire on September 30, 2021, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) announced on Friday (9-24-21) that Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae (the Enterprise) will continue to offer COVID-19 forbearance to qualifying multifamily property owners, as needed, subject to the tenant protections FHFA has imposed during the pandemic.
Real Estate Experts Anticipate Foreclosures Will Play Only a Small Part in Increased Housing Availability
Zillow Group Inc., the Seattle-based online real estate marketplace company, reported that real estate experts responding to their latest Zillow® Home Price Expectation Survey expect that desperately needed housing inventory is on the rise and expected to come primarily from sales by existing homeowners, among a host of other sources — the smallest of which is foreclosures.
Single-Family Home Construction is Making a Comeback
The NAHB is reporting that the gap between the multifamily and single-family construction sector has been closing since early 2017, and as of June 2021, there are now almost an equal number of units under construction in both sectors. According to the NAHN, as of July there were 690,000 apartments and 691,000 single family homes under construction.
Softwood Lumber Board and U.S. Dept. of Agriculture Sign Memorandum of Understanding to Support Net-Zero Carbon Construction
Under the terms of the MOU, effective immediately, the SLB and USDA will expand a public-private partnership that seeks to grow demand for wood products as natural climate solutions. The organizations will jointly explore and coordinate additional market development, research, technological advances, and other activities to expand the use of wood in the built environment.
Leading Economic Index® for the U.S. Rose Sharply in August
The Conference Board, a non-partisan, not-for-profit think tank founded in 1916, released today (9-23-21) the Leading Economic Index® (LEI) for the U.S. in August. According to the report, the LEI for the U.S. increased by 0.9% in August to 117.1 (2016 = 100), following a 0.8% increase in July and a 0.6% increase in June.