Chippewa Valley YouthBuild Addresses Labor Shortages and Skills Gaps
In speaking with Chippewa Valley contractors one topic continues to rise to the top…..rising costs of lumber and steel! In recent weeks steel price increases have caused many contractors to rework the material costs on their jobs. Lumber prices, which skyrocketed upward at the beginning of the pandemic in 2020 began to come back down around the end of the summer of 2020. Currently both the lumber and steel prices have taken off again surging 20% to 25%. Experts predict that lumber and steel prices will remain elevated into 2022, but lower than the current extreme rates. According to the Producer Price Index, softwood lumber prices increased 73% while Iron and steel scrap jumped 50% over the past year. Many potential homeowners are rapidly being forced out of the market due to these [...]
