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Wisconsin Building Supply is a destination for industry insight and a marketplace for valuable products at discounted prices.

Please remember, item availability is not guaranteed. All sales are final. Upon request, purchased items can be transferred to the WBS location nearest you. For additional information on any of the items listed, please contact the WBS location carrying the item/s.

Friday, June 29, 2012

Wisconsin Building Supply June Market Update


The cost of materials continues to grow as a portion of home construction costs when compared to years prior. You will see some additional information on this later in the newsletter. Though we are nowhere near historic highs, prices are still an incredible value when compared to the past. We are posting any notifications of announced price increases on our blog and you can verify what impact these increases may have on your business with your sales person.


Cost of Housing Still Making Great Strides
The month of June has seen the largest increase yet in cost of housing for a typical two-story home this year when compared to 2011. Cost of housing now is 20% higher than this time last year, surpassing last month’s shocking leap from a 1% (April) to 13% (May) increase when compared to last year. The continuation of such significant growth further validates signs that both the economy and housing market are improving.

Campaign for Home Ownership on Capitol Hill
In recognition of National Home Ownership month, the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) called on congress to make home ownership a national priority. More than 700 home builders gathered on Capitol Hill on June 6, 2012, in an effort to improve the job market, national economy, and housing market.

According to the NAHB Chairman Barry Rutenberg, “Persistently tight lending standards for home builders and buyers, uncertainty regarding the future of the housing finance system, ongoing threats to vital housing tax incentives, and overly burdensome regulations are hampering a housing recovery and keeping countless home building firms from constructing viable projects and hiring new workers.”

Builders met with senators and representatives to support legislation in favor of the following initiatives:
       Restore the flow of credit for new housing production with the Home Construction Lending Regulatory Improvement Act. The bill would reduce barriers for lending while also preserving regulators and financial institutions.
       Reform housing government sponsored enterprises Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the Federal Home Loan Banks to provide a federal backstop and ensure a reliable and adequate flow of affordable housing credit in all economic and financial conditions.

       Preserve current housing tax incentives such as the mortgage interest deduction and Low Income Housing Tax Credit.

       Improve the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Lead: Repair, Renovation and Painting rule (LRRP) by reinstating the opt-out provision, allowing home owners without children to decide whether to comply with LRRP.

       Reduce the overreach of federal power under the Clean Water Act. The Preserve the Waters of the United States Act would prevent the EPA and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers from expanding the Clean Water Act to include virtually every ditch, pond and seasonal runoff ditch in the nation.