National Hardwood Magazine - December 2023

MUELLER BROTHERS TIMBER,

MUELLER BROTHERS TIMBER, INC. Tracey Mueller, Log Procurement; Kevin Mueller, Mill Manager; and Randy Mueller, Sales SAWMILL AND TWIN BAND RESAW Manufacturers of: 4/4 - 8/4 Grade Lumber SPECIALIZING IN PLAIN SAWN: • WALNUT • COTTONWOOD • SYCAMORE • HICKORY • RED OAK • WHITE OAK• SOFT MAPLE • HARD MAPLE • ASH 400,000’ DRY KILN CAPACITY 1,000,000’ DRY STORAGE PLANER STRAIGHT LINE RIP GANG RIPPING DOUBLE END TRIM EXPORT PACKAGING CONTAINER LOADING Grooved sticks used on all whitewoods and White Oak. P.O. BOX 175 OLD MONROE, MO 63369 PHONE: 636-665-5193 FAX: 636-665-5812 Email: randy@muellerbros.com www.muellerbros.com NHLA QUEBEC Continued Areas (CMAs). These are Calgary, Vancouver, Edmonton, Toronto, Ottawa and Montreal. Tighter borrowing conditions, elevated construction and labor costs, and high interest rates created challenging conditions for homebuilders across all six major markets. Additionally, construction timelines saw a slight increase from the first half of 2022, up 0.9 months. Toronto and Vancouver accounted for nearly twothirds of the housing starts across the six markets, with apartment starts making up nearly three-quarters of all housing construction. The strong apartment growth observed in Toronto and Vancouver was offset by declines in Canada’s other largest centers. Montreal tends to build more small and low-rise apartment structures than Toronto and Vancouver. Because of their smaller size, these structures take less time to plan and build. The decline in housing starts in Montreal was, therefore, more reflective of the recent deterioration in financial conditions. Elevated rates of apartment construction, highlights the report, are not likely to be sustainable due to various challenges facing developers. These challenges include higher construction costs and higher interest rates. This cutback takes place at a time when more sellers are coming to market. New listings have increased in each of the last six months, and in September surpassed their pre-pandemic level by 10 percent (this data is the most current data available at press time). The Royal Bank of Canada’s Monthly Housing Market Update notes that early evidence in September confirmed that higher interest rates continue to restrain real estate activity across most of the country – with Alberta once again bucking the trend with its sustained vigour. Home resales fell 1.9 percent month over month (m/m) nationwide, marking the third consecutive monthly decline. A sharp easing of supply-demand conditions since summer has brought most markets into better balance while tipping Ontario into a buyer’s market. This has relieved the upward pricing pressure that built in the spring. Canada’s aggregate MLS Home Price Index fell slightly month-over-month in September (-0.3 percent) for the first time since March. Prices are expected to soften further through the remainder of this year and possibly into early next as market conditions continue to tilt in favor of buyers. Sales declines were widespread in September with few markets reporting advances. Among Canada’s larger markets, the pullback was sharpest in Vancouver (-5.6 percent m/m). Though the latest backstep in Toronto looked comparatively modest at -1.8 percent, the fall since this spring’s peak is substantially more pronounced (-22.4 percent) than in Vancouver (-13.7 percent). Higher interest rates, affordability challenges and economic uncertainty are likely to keep homebuyer demand muted in the near term. At the same time, higher interest costs may also exert increasing pressure on existing homeowners to sell, keeping the flow of new listings going. Together these trends would hand buyers more pricing power in the months ahead, driving prices further down in Ontario while restraining gains elsewhere in the country. With housing markets down, it will mean less consumer spending on many Hardwood finished goods as consumers reign in their spending as interest rates are higher and with the economic uncertainty. We extend the Hardwood industry sincerest best wishes for a happy, healthy and prosperous Holiday Season. n nationalhardwoodmag.com INDUSTRY NEWS Continued from page 17 well as European Union and United Kingdom compliant. They offer ripped to width lumber. Granite Valley has 40 dry kilns, 60 bay green bin sorter, 100 carts off their dry line and two sawmills. Granite Valley purchases 400,000 board feet of kiln-dried lumber monthly (5 million board feet annually). Before joining the Granite Valley team, Hyer started piling lumber in 2004, he then went on to be the chief business development officer, chief inventory officer and director of international sales at MacDonald & Owen Lumber. He also serves as a volunteer for the American Hardwood Export Council and previously served as the chairman of the board. Hyer went to the University of Wisconsin – La Crosse and graduated with a degree in Chemistry in 2004. Hyer has been married to his wife for 21 years and is a father to five children. For more information visit www.granitevalley.com. DMSi Announces Log and Lumber Division DMSi has been at the forefront of innovation for inventory and order management solutions for the building materials industry. With a recent growth initiative, the company is now poised to provide the same level of innovative solutions to the Hardwood industry. DMSi’s Log and Lumber Division was officially created earlier this year, as a way for the company to specifically focus on the inventory, production and order management needs of the Hardwood industry. “Hardwood companies need software that can address Please turn the page Family Owned And Operated Since 1976. A.W. Stiles Contractors providing a full line of Modern Day Lumber Drying Equipment. New Installations and Complete Rebuilds on Existing Equipment. Hardwood Package Kilns, Predryers, Walnut Steamers. Also manufacturing softwood kilns, including Dual Path Continuous Kilns. Our kilns are all manufactured in McMinnville, Tennessee. Complete Kiln and Predryer Rebuilds •Roof Replacements •Heating Coils and Complete Steam Systems •Doors and Carriers •Structural Repairs • seals, etc. •Protective Coatings •Complete line of replacement parts Providing replacement control installations and upgrades for existing kilns and pre-dryers. Screen shot above. User Friendly, Reliable, Compatible with Existing Equipment. Contact: Lee Stiles Cell: (931) 409-0144 286 Bass Lane, McMinnville, TN 37110 Email: lee@awscontractorsinc.com Website: www.awscontractorsinc.com 72 DECEMBER 2023 n NATIONAL HARDWOOD MAGAZINE RealAmericanHardwood.com/industry RealAmericanHardwood.com/industry DECEMBER 2023 n NATIONAL HARDWOOD MAGAZINE 73