Lumber Prices

[scogar]

This may be a silly question, but I'm wondering are there some reference prices out there? I mean is there a website/industry group that is updated periodically that provides the cost of 2 by ... (4, 6, 8, et al) for the common person? Meaning I'm not looking for the cost of buying a shipping container or 1MBF, 10MBF + 

Say I need to build a house and expect to buy $40K (or whatever?) worth of lumber, I'd like to find a link that says 1st Q 2022, 12 foot 2x8's are averaging $xx and have this for many different common building materials including sheet goods. Right now I'm simply looking at Home Depot and using their prices on a case by case basis. I'm hoping some of you sawyers have a rag sheet of some kind that lets you better assess current retail market rates for dimensioned building lumber. I don't even think I need it to be free as I'm not sure I would be averse to paying for a short subscription for such info.

To tie it into sawmills, it gives me some basis to calculate break even on a saw, or on charging for product. Also, if there is a better forum to ask this, please advise.

Thanks

[WV Sawmiller]

  This may be a shot in the dark but I'd just check the prices from the big box stores and look for the kind of wood you plan to use. I think you will find a basic bf price for construction type lumber. Hopefully you could negotiate a much better price buying in bulk but I'd think that should give you a fair estimate for a worst case cost. :

[rusticretreater]

Checking the stores is one source.  You can also find prices listed on sawmill websites.  I see wood advertised in the local trader papers. There are also quality issues.  Box stores basically are the highest priced, worst quality wood overall.  I buy my treated wood at the local co-op.

[SwampDonkey]

@scogar I get my weekly update off Natural Resources Canada's website, which gets their data from Madison Lumber Reporter  and Random Lengths .  And they bring it all together here . 

If you're pricing for construction, you're left checking with your local lumber yards. Many have online shopping. I have one here that has an online store, but no prices on their forest products. There's always the phone. They will have larger dimension wood, like 2 x 10" when others don't.  But the big boys show pricing, like Kent, Home Depot.

[scogar]

Thanks guys. And @SwampDonkey, these look like the sheets I was hoping for. Looks like there's no real way to get around MBF - but I should have expected that. And it seems like the way I was handling this before asking you all was also pretty much the correct way to do this. Look up the HD or Lowes price per stick - not to buy but to use as a basis if I don't have a price sheet from a local mill. The purpose is to show the wife a spreadsheet that compares the cost of retail purchase of wood against sawing it myself. It would be super easy to show that just milling all the trim could easily justify a mill cost of $5K...even $10K.

But if I really push for those hydraulics, I'm looking at much higher costs to break even. So I will need to really consider what projects are expected in next few years and what I can calculate wood costs to be. I always have resale value in the bank so to speak, but I don't have a habit of selling any of "my toys" and she knows this. 

Here's to hoping I can justify upping the model yet again

[stavebuyer]

Nothing wrong with owning a mill; but for inside uses you really need to figure a kiln and planer to go along with it. 2x4s will likely be priced differently by the time you take delivery of a mill and saw/dry lumber.

[JRWoodchuck]

Most reputable lumber yards will have a contractors desk that can put a bid together for the cost of framing material for your house as well as flooring, trim, siding depending on how far you want to go down the rabbit hole...

[Crossroads]

When I was leaving the CLT factory to run my mill full time, the lumber purchaser told me to use "random length" to know what prices were. I haven't subscribed to it yet but may in the future. 
https://www.randomlengths.com/In-Depth/Monthly-Composite-Prices/

[beenthere]

Visit Stimson Lbr Co operations office in Plummer and see if you can see a copy there. May (or may not) know what you are asking about. ;)

Or check the Library at Coeur d'Alene and see if they have the subscription that you can see a copy.

[Crossroads]

Yes, those are good resources I have used when buying logs to get a prices. I do a lot more mobile milling than custom milling, so I don't track pricing on a regular basis. I think that may change with time though. 

[WDH]

Random Lengths is high volume wholesale at mill level without freight or hauling.  If you are looking for retail or final to the customer pricing, Random Lengths won't help you.

[SawyerTed]

An alternative method is to start with delivered log prices and figure primary and secondary processing from that point.  

To do that Timber Mart is the to go to place for saw log prices. Then figure cost to saw, kiln dry and surface.  

The "industry" publications have peripheral relevance to small custom sawing operations.

Trying to compete with the prices of a company that saws MILLIONS of board feet a DAY is difficult.

Small custom sawing has its niche. But sawing framing lumber isn't it.

[metalspinner]

Don't forget all
The flooring, cabinets, and furniture that needs to be built!
A solar kiln (built with your sawn lumber, btw😉) can bury a one man shop with more KD wood than he can handle. 

[Crossroads]

Random Lengths is high volume wholesale at mill level without freight or hauling.  If you are looking for retail or final to the customer pricing, Random Lengths won't help you.

Correct, it definitely doesn't fit into what I do. 

[Stephen1]

The sawmill is the least expensive part of the lumber process. Then you dry your lumber, grade it, then plane it for use. Running the sawmill is 20%, the rest is material handling, from one process to the next piece of expensive equipment....

[Peter Drouin]

I jumped up all my prices.