Posted: May 24, 2021 1:00 PM NT | Last Updated: May 24 comments
Joe McGrath and his wife have been making do with a renovation that remains unfinished. Construction costs soared after they locked down plans to take advantage of a provincial rebate program. (Kyle Mooney/CBC)
Soaring lumber costs have proven to be a trap for homeowners in Newfoundland and Labrador who took advantage of a popular provincial rebate program last year, and now find themselves locked into renovation contracts.
Joe McGrath is one of those homeowners caught between the plans of last year and a project that remains unfinished, many months later.
Looking down at his kitchen s dusty plywood floors while a painter coats columns of white on some nearby drywall, he laughs defeatedly.
iNhome | Kamloops, Okanagan residents are starting to curtail home projects as prices rise infotel.ca - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from infotel.ca Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
North American lumber prices go through the roof - Business News castanet.net - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from castanet.net Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
But record-high prices for lumber and other wood products are making it hard for homebuilders, especially those companies tied into stipulated price contracts. “Homebuilding is through the roof,” said Larry Clay, president of Clay Construction and incoming president for the Canadian Homebuilders Association. “Everybody I talk to is exceptionally busy. It’s about as busy as it’s ever been.” The bad news is that lumber prices are also through the roof. In recent months, softwood lumber prices have been breaking records. The reason is booming housing starts and home renovations in the U.S. and Canada, and a shrinking timber supply in B.C., traditionally one of North America’s biggest softwood lumber producers.