Lumber Prices and US Housing Starts Update: Sept 2025
Saturday, September 20, 2025
VANCOUVER, BC, Sept. 18, 2025 /CNW/ - Total US Housing Starts year-to-date almost flat compared to 2024.
Since 1952 Madison's Lumber Reporter has established itself as the most reliable source for North American lumber prices and industry news. By providing a true 360ยบ perspective on all aspects of wood products' manufacturing, Madison's makes you better equipped to anticipate other market conditions, like housing or energy.
This week is no different, so let's dive into the data:
-- The Madison's Lumber Prices Index for the week ending September 12, 2025
is: US$471 mfbm. This is down -1%, or -$6, from the previous week when
it was US$477.This is down -12%, or -$65, from one month ago when it was
US$536.Click for information regarding the Madison's Lumber Prices
Index.
-- In the week ending Sept 12, 2025 benchmark softwood lumber item Western
Spruce-Pine-Fir 2x4 #2&Btr KD (RL) was US$420 mfbm, which is flat from
the previous week, and is down -$81, or -16%, from one month ago when it
was $501.
-- Total US housing starts in August were 1.307 million units, down -8.5%
from the revised 1.429 million units in July, and down -6% from August
2024 when it was 1.391 million units.
Single-family housing starts, which account for the bulk of homebuilding, in August dropped -7% from July's 957,000 units, at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 890,000, the lowest level since April 2023.
It is important to note that year-to-date Total Starts (Actual) are almost flat over January to August last year, at 935,100 units compared to 928,700 in 2024. For Single-Family (not seasonally-adjusted) it is down -5%, at 658,600 units started year-to-date 2025.
Total US housing permits in August were down -4% to 1.312 million units, while Single-Family permits fell -2% to 856,000 units.
Shrewd investors know that construction framing softwood lumber prices are a good leading indicator for US housing activity, including home building and home sales. Don't miss out, get lumber price data updates directly to your desktop every Friday morning.
The number of single-family houses approved for construction that were yet to be started slipped -1.5% to 133,000 units. The completions rate for that housing segment surged +6.7% to 1.090 million.
"Homebuilders slowed construction in August, returning to the sluggish pace seen earlier in the year after a brief pickup in July," said Nationwide Economist Daniel Vielhaber. "With a weakening labor market and still high mortgage rates, we expect builder sentiment and, therefore, home construction to remain subdued at least into early 2026."
The inventory of single-family housing under construction fell -2.1% to a rate of 611,000 units, the lowest level since January 2021.
"Consumers' low confidence and heightened concerns about job security represent ongoing headwinds to demand," said Samuel Tombs, chief U.S. economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics. "We expect residential investment to remain a drag on GDP growth at least until mid-2026."
Looking closely at the lumber price history, compared to the same week last year, when it was US$406 mfbm, the price of Western Spruce-Pine-Fir 2x4 #2&Btr KD (RL) for the week ending September 12, 2025 was up +$14, or +3%. Compared to two years ago when it was $426, that week's price was down -$6, or -1%, according to the latest data from Madison's Lumber Reporter.
Madison's
Benchmark 2x4 Dimension Lumber Prices: Current Compared to Recent and
Historical Highs & Lows of: 2015 to 2021 madisonsreport.com
R/L un US$ per thousand board feet Current: Recent % Previous % Previous %
High:
(net FOB sawmill) 2025-09-12 Change High: Change vs. Low: Change
May 2021
June 2018 Previous High Sept 2015
SYP East Side KD #2&Btr $345 $1,364 -75 % $460 -25 % $311 11 %
WSPF KD #2&Btr $420 $1,617 -74 % $443 -5 % $249 69 %
ESPF KD #2&Btr $590 $1,687 -65 % $529 12 % $350 69 %
Douglas fir Green $385 $1,344 -71 % $500 -23 % $302 27 %
WSPF 2x4 STUDS (PET) $320 $1,489 -79 % $445 -28 % $230 39 %
To subscribe to Madison's Lumber Reporter, simply fill out an order form here: https://madisonsreport.com/subscribe/
Madison's Lumber Reporter Weekly Summary: September 12, 2025
Framing Lumber:
The lumber market was full of mixed signals this week. Many players reported better inquiry while others lamented an ongoing malaise of slow demand.
KEY LUMBER PRICES AND MARKET CONDITIONS TAKE-AWAYS:
-- Western-SPF traders in the US described a value market, encouraged
customers to cover short-term needs while prices were down and
negotiable.
-- In Canada, Western-SPF sellers reported a surge of inquiry and sales had
materialized.
-- Buyers agreed with recently lower prices thus bought in volume, so mills
were able to clean up their inventories.
-- Sawmills in the Pacific Northwest established order files in the two- to
three-week range.
-- Sales of Eastern-SPF to US buyers were fitful; mills were competitive on
some items while others were priced out by the added Duty cost.
-- In Southern Yellow Pine, commodity trading was uneventful as the market
remained in a confused state of price discovery.
-- There was plenty of SYP available among both primary and secondary
suppliers.
-- Stocking wholesalers on the US eastern seaboard had trouble moving
product with any semblance of consistency.
Established in 1952, Madison's Lumber Prices is your premiere source for North American softwood lumber news, prices, industry insight, and industry contacts. The weekly Madison's Lumber Reporter publishes current Canadian and US construction framing dimension lumber and panel wholesaler pricing information 50 weeks a year and access to historical pricing as well.
Madison's offers a variety of products to meet your information needs regarding the North American forest products industry including:
Madison's Lumber Prices Dashboard: https://madisonsreport.com/products/lumber-price-dashboard/
Madison's Heating Wood Pellet Prices: https://madisonsreport.com/products/pellets/
Madison's British Columbia Coast Log Prices: https://madisonsreport.com/products/bc-coastal-logs/
Madison's North America Sawmill Listings: https://madisonsreport.com/products/sawmill-directory/
Madison's Sawmill Curtailment Lookout: https://madisonsreport.com/products/sawmill-lookout/
SOURCE Madison's Lumber Reporter
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