Navigating the Lumber Shortage

If you've priced out a project lately — a deck, a garage, a renovation — you already know. Lumber prices have gone through the roof, and we don't say that lightly coming from a building centre.

Here are the numbers as of this spring: a 4x8 sheet of OSB — oriented strand board, the sheathing that goes on walls and roofs — has gone from roughly $15 to $55. That's not a typo. That's a 300% increase. Dimensional lumber — your 2x4s, 2x6s, 2x10s — has tripled in price from pre-pandemic levels. And it's not just lumber. Caulking, nails, screws, adhesives — we're seeing constant price increases across categories that used to be stable for years at a time.

Materials we ordered last fall are still arriving months late. That's not a North Rustico problem or a PEI problem — it's global. Sawmills shut down or slowed during COVID. Shipping containers are stuck in the wrong ports. Demand for home renovation exploded across North America as everyone decided to fix up their house at the same time. The supply chain wasn't built for this, and it broke.

What You Can Do

• Order early. If you're planning a summer build, order materials now. Don't wait until June and hope everything is in stock. Lead times are real, and a month of planning saves weeks of waiting.
• Be flexible on timing. Your project might need to start two or three weeks later than you planned, depending on when materials arrive. Build that buffer into your schedule.
• Consider alternatives where possible. Some PEI builders are exploring alternative materials or adjusting designs to work with what's available. We can help you think through options.
• Talk to us. Seriously. Come in, call us, tell us what you're building. We can check stock, give you current pricing, and help you figure out the most cost-effective way to get your project done. Home Hardware's national warehouse network gives us access to supply across the country, and we're pulling every lever we have to keep product on the Island.

We know it's frustrating. We hear it every day at the counter, and we feel it too — we don't like telling a customer that the price on their quote went up again, or that the delivery is pushed back another two weeks. But we'd rather be honest about what's happening than pretend everything is normal.

This will ease. Market forecasts suggest the worst of the pricing should settle by 2022 as production catches up with demand. In the meantime, plan ahead, be patient, and know that we're doing everything we can to keep the shelves stocked and the prices as fair as our supply costs allow.

Come see us. We'll figure it out together.