Housing industry reps bemoan Canadian lumber tariffs inaction

“Our members in every state across the land are clearly concerned that growing supply chain disruptions and worsening affordability conditions that are harming demand are weakening the housing market,” Konter said at the time. “The industry believes these challenges will grow worse if meaningful steps are not taken to allow builders to increase the supply of affordable single-family and multifamily for-sale and for-rent housing. If the housing sector falters, the economy will surely follow.”

Further exacerbating affordability woes is the unprecedented price volatility in lumber prices that has raised the cost of a typical single-family home by more than $18,600 and added approximately $10,000 to the cost of a typical apartment since last August, according to the NAHB. Tariffs on Canadian lumber shipments into the US are further fueling price volatility, “acting as a tax on American home buyers at a time when housing affordability is already at a more than 10-year low,” officials wrote, citing the latest data from the NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Opportunity Index.

Ernie Hofmann, president of New Jersey-based Hofmann Design Build Inc., is among those calling for an end to Canadian tariffs. In a previous interview with Mortgage Professional America, he questioned the need for tariffs on Canadian lumber at all.

“What makes absolutely no sense at all is that the Department of Commerce doubled the tariff on soft lumber imports from Canada, which is framing lumber,” Hofmann said. “Framing lumber a year ago in May was five times what it was the year before – the highest in history. In July, it went down to pre-COVID prices for July-August, and then it started to creep up in September. And in November – for God only knows what reason – the Commerce Department doubled the tariff on soft lumber imports. Why would they do that?”