VANCOUVER, BC, Sept. 18, 2025 /CNW/ - Total US Housing Starts year-to-date almost flat compared to 2024.

Since 1952 Madison's Lumber Reporter has established itself as the most reliable source for North American lumber prices and industry news. By providing a true 360º perspective on all aspects of wood products' manufacturing, Madison's makes you better equipped to anticipate other market conditions, like housing or energy.

This week is no different, so let's dive into the data:

• The Madison's Lumber Prices Index for the week ending September 12, 2025 is: US$471 mfbm. This is down -1%, or -$6, from the previous week when it was US$477.
  This is down -12%, or -$65, from one month ago when it was US$536.
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• In the week ending Sept 12, 2025 benchmark softwood lumber item Western Spruce-Pine-Fir 2x4 #2&Btr KD (RL) was US$420 mfbm, which is flat from the previous week, and is down -$81, or -16%, from one month ago when it was $501.
• Total US housing starts in August were 1.307 million units, down -8.5% from the revised 1.429 million units in July, and down -6% from August 2024 when it was 1.391 million units.

Single-family housing starts, which account for the bulk of homebuilding, in August dropped -7% from July's 957,000 units, at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 890,000, the lowest level since April 2023.

It is important to note that year-to-date Total Starts (Actual) are almost flat over January to August last year, at 935,100 units compared to 928,700 in 2024. For Single-Family (not seasonally-adjusted) it is down -5%, at 658,600 units started year-to-date 2025.

Total US housing permits in August were down -4% to 1.312 million units, while Single-Family permits fell -2% to 856,000 units.

Shrewd investors know that construction framing softwood lumber prices are a good leading indicator for US housing activity, including home building and home sales.  Don't miss out, get lumber price data updates directly to your desktop every Friday morning.

The number of single-family houses approved for construction that were yet to be started slipped -1.5% to 133,000 units. The completions rate for that housing segment surged +6.7% to 1.090 million.

"Homebuilders slowed construction in August, returning to the sluggish pace seen earlier in the year after a brief pickup in July," said Nationwide Economist Daniel Vielhaber. "With a weakening labor market and still high mortgage rates, we expect builder sentiment and, therefore, home construction to remain subdued at least into early 2026."

The inventory of single-family housing under construction fell -2.1% to a rate of 611,000 units, the lowest level since January 2021.

"Consumers' low confidence and heightened concerns about job security represent ongoing headwinds to demand," said Samuel Tombs, chief U.S. economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics. "We expect residential investment to remain a drag on GDP growth at least until mid-2026."

Looking closely at the lumber price history, compared to the same week last year, when it was US$406 mfbm, the price of Western Spruce-Pine-Fir 2x4 #2&Btr KD (RL) for the week ending September 12, 2025 was up +$14, or +3%.  Compared to two years ago when it was $426, that week's price was down -$6, or -1%, according to the latest data from Madison's Lumber Reporter.

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Madison's Lumber Reporter Weekly Summary: September 12, 2025

Framing Lumber:
The lumber market was full of mixed signals this week. Many players reported better inquiry while others lamented an ongoing malaise of slow demand.

KEY LUMBER PRICES AND MARKET CONDITIONS TAKE-AWAYS:

• Western-SPF traders in the US described a value market, encouraged customers to cover short-term needs while prices were down and negotiable.
• In Canada, Western-SPF sellers reported a surge of inquiry and sales had materialized.
• Buyers agreed with recently lower prices thus bought in volume, so mills were able to clean up their inventories.
• Sawmills in the Pacific Northwest established order files in the two- to three-week range.
• Sales of Eastern-SPF to US buyers were fitful; mills were competitive on some items while others were priced out by the added Duty cost.
• In Southern Yellow Pine, commodity trading was uneventful as the market remained in a confused state of price discovery.
• There was plenty of SYP available among both primary and secondary suppliers.
• Stocking wholesalers on the US eastern seaboard had trouble moving product with any semblance of consistency.

Established in 1952, Madison's Lumber Prices is your premiere source for North American softwood lumber news, prices, industry insight, and industry contacts. The weekly Madison's Lumber Reporter publishes current Canadian and US construction framing dimension lumber and panel wholesaler pricing information 50 weeks a year and access to historical pricing as well.

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SOURCE Madison's Lumber Reporter