According to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, overall household debt increased by $206 billion in Q4 of 2020 to $14.56 trillion. The primary driver was a dramatic increase in mortgage originations.
Wood Markets News
January Building Permits Up 10.4% — Housing Starts and Completions Reported Lower
The U.S. Census Bureau has reported that privately‐owned housing starts in January were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR) of 1,580,000. This is -6.0% below the revised December estimate of 1,680,000 and is -2.3% below the January 2020 rate.
LP Announces the Restart of the Peace Valley OSB Mill Later in 2021
Louisiana Pacific (LP) has announced that it intends to restart the Peace Valley OSB mill in Fort St. John, B.C. sometime later this year. LP curtailed the mill in June 2019 due a drop in U.S. housing starts and low commodity OSB prices.
Producer Price Index Increases 1.3% in January – Largest Monthly Increase on Record
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today (2-17-21) that the Producer Price Index (PPI) for final demand, seasonally adjusted, increased 1.3% in January. January’s increase is the largest since the PPI began in December 2009.
Builder Confidence Rebounds to a Reading of 84 in February
The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI) reports that builder confidence in the market for newly built single-family homes rebounded 1-point in February, after two consecutive months of declines, to a reading of 84.
Shares of Mortgages in Forbearance Decline in Week Ending February 7, 2021
The latest Mortgage Banker Association’s (MBA) Forbearance and Call Survey reports that the total number of loans now in forbearance decreased by 6 basis points from 5.35% of servicers’ portfolio volume in the prior week to 5.29% as of February 7, 2021.
Mortgage Applications Decline 5.1% in Week Ending February 12, 2021
According to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Weekly Mortgage Application Survey, for the week ending February 12th, 2021, the Market Composite Index — a measure of mortgage loan application volume — decreased -5.1% on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier.
Wood Product Sales Lead Canadian Manufacturing Sales Higher in December
Statistic Canada is reporting that manufacturing sales rose 0.9% to $54.2 billion in December. Sales were up in 9 of 21 industries, led by the wood product, transportation equipment, and petroleum and coal product industries.
Canadian Home Sales Set Another All-Time Record High in January 2021
The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) is reporting that national homes sales in Canada set another all-time record in January 2021. Month-over-month (M-O-M) (December 2020 – January 2021) homes sales in Canada increased by 2%.
Property Taxes at the State and Local Level Have Increased Nearly 20% in Last 4-years
Analysis provided by the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) of the U.S. Census Bureau’s Quarterly Tax Data reveals that U.S. property owners paid $633.9 billion in taxes in the four quarters ending in Q3 2020.