Associated Press “Builders grapple with land shortage, soaring lumber costs”

U.S. homebuilders are poised to benefit this spring homebuying season amid strong demand, low mortgage rates and an all-time low inventory of previously occupied homes for sale. But soaring lumber prices and a shortage of construction-ready land could limit their ability to capitalize on the strong housing market trends, analysts say.

Ali Wolf, Chief Economist at Zonda, forecasts that new U.S. home sales will rise 5% this year over 2020. That would be a far slower pace of growth than the nearly 20% jump last year from 2019.