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If you're wondering why the houses around you are getting more expensive, look to their roots. No, literally: Lumber prices have soared, and, as Insider's Ayelet Sheffey and Libertina Brandt reported, builders are even increasing house prices in an attempt to offset demand.
It's due to another pandemic disruption, as lumber mills were forced to temporarily close for safety concerns. When they reopened, they couldn't keep up with a scorching-hot housing market, goosed by a working-from-home economy, record low mortgage rates, and the need for personal space during the pandemic.
According to an April analysis from the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), soaring lumber prices added $36,000 to the cost of a new home. Lumber prices "remain stubbornly high," according to the report, due to mills shutting down, not ramping up production, and unexpected demand from big box retail and DIY-ers, and tariffs imposed on Canadian lumber.