Lumber prices continue to rise after a brief down turn

RIGBY, Idaho (KIFI) - Lumber prices are continuing to rise after a brief downturn during the month of June.

Currently, lumber prices are starting to rise so far during the month of July.

Gene, who is a lumber salesman for Yellowstone Lumber, says part of the reason for this continuous fluctuation is due to a higher demand in housing in the region.

"Idaho seems to be a hot spot in a way, and it seems like we have quite a few people still moving here and we've got builders that are building. Just last week alone, I had four sets of plans come in for four building houses again," Gene said.

An Oriented Standard board (OSB) is a type of plywood that is commonly used when building homes. Gene says thanks to rising demand in home building in this area, the cost of lumber is going up.

"It all seems to be a hot spot in a way, and it seems like we have quite a few people still moving here and we've got builders that are building. Just last week alone, I had four sets of plans come in for four building houses again."

Gene says while the demand for new homes are starting to rise creating a higher demand driving those prices up, it's not the only thing that is causing prices to rise.

"The other the other factor that was really hitting us pretty hard is, uh,  for freight companies and shipping price of yours driving the price up there because it takes, you know, ten of a thousand or 1500 dollars to move a truck from, you know, from the middle of the country."

He says currently OSB is at $25 for a 7/16" sheet.