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Here in the panhandle of Florida we are experiencing 6-10 week (so they say)delays with drywall delivery. I have one of my guys calling around every morning to find out if anyone recieved a truck the night before because all the suppliers and “depots” are only selling on a first come basis and only then about 25-30 sheets per purchase. One of my drywall contractors, who normally is hanging and finishing about 10 houses at a time was telling me that he has about 25 projects backlogged because of the shortage. On the bright side we are getting all the patch and touch-up work done in a timely fashion. I am curious to know if there is a part of the country flush with drywall.
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Kcoyner,
I tend to agree with your assessment. Down here in hurricane country we have seen this ploy with plywood almost every year since they started naming storms. Actually, I did talk with a friend who works for a raw gypsum supplier who said that the industry was producing as much drywall as possible and they were predicting shortages until around Jan. Does that make this something we can blame on Y2K?
I'm still trying to find out if there are other areas of the country that are experiencing this type of shortages. Is there anyone else out there reading this?
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Drywall is getting a little harder to get here in Eastern OK .We are trying to reserve some for a couple of upcoming houses .I have heard there is somewhat of a concrete shortage but we havnt seen it yet .Chuck
*Peter, y'all are experiencing the same delays we are, and I'm in New Orleans. There was a big article in the local newspaper this past week about the drywall shortage; seems, as your friend said, that the industry can't keep up with demand, which is due to all the new housing starts, which is due to the low interest rates, which is due to the Feds being too busy telling jokes about Clinton and Monica to raise the rates... uh, wait minute, that last part was pure conjecture on my part.Anyway, good ol' Home Depot has quite a bit of sheetrock, at least I bought a couple of sheets this past weekend... but, then, I'm not building entire houses, just patching up the one I have. : )Patty
*Local lumber yard told me today that he is reserving drywall for people who purchase building packages from him. Roofing shingles are becoming a problem. Local brick manufacturer is "firing to order" with very little in stock. NE Arkansas.
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I read an article in the Wall Street Journal about the drywall shortage. Apparently the drywall production capacity dropped during the last recession, and has never really recovered (there was some hinting about the industry being gun shy about increasing capacity again, because a number of companies got burned in the last boom/recession cycle by bringing new capacity online just as the economy tanked). According to the article, there isn't much demand for the stuff outside North America, so when housing construction drops here, there is no other market to take up the slack.
NickB
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Nick, just curious - what are new houses built with outside of North America? Or is it just that there aren't enough housing starts outside of our country?
Patty
*Patty,Here down under we also use drywall ( maybe we should be sending you some over ) It costs around $10 USD for an 8x4 sheet.Mark
*I am also building a house here in VA. My brick supplier says the manufacturers are booked with orders through fall, and have no inventory on hand. There is a lot of commercial brick building going on around here. The supplier has enough brick on his lot to supply my house, if I like the limited choice! The drywall has been in short supply for several months, and my lumber supplier says it is getting worse. Today a drywall supplier called the lumber yard to see if they could by drywall from them. Lumber appears plentiful, but prices are going up.What timing to build a house.Frank
*I know someone at the Fed; apparently they can't figure out what's going on with the economy and are afraid to touch anything. Anyway, it's all up to the Oracle Greenspan.Oil prices are up, that may raise prices too.
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Patty,
Its my understanding (no experience here, just what I've heard) that plaster is preferred to drywall overseas.
Nick
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Just talked with my dry wall supplier in La Crosse, WI. Was quoted .295/ft sq, 5/8" delivered. They said there is an acute shortage in Texas and Florida and other dealers in the sate of WI are trying to buy from them. They are getting the same allocation this year as last year. Hope that helps.
Dennis
*We can also blame Greenspan for the Y2K crises. ; ) He helped program the babies back then, and says that it was so crazy that he can't even remember what he did.
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Just wondering if any of you are having problems with material shortages. My supplier told me today that brick is 2 to 3 months out for most styles. Some styles as much as 6 months, and many will not be available the rest of the year very soon.
Drywall isn't much better. They only get 600 sheets at a time and have a long waiting list. Some brands of shingles are also on allocation.
What other shortages are out there and what's next?
*Where are you at?Dennis
*Sheetrock and Insulation here in NC. One of the local brick manufactures said I'd have to wait 6 weeks for any type of brick, but another has whatever I need.
*I'm in Virginia.
*Here in the panhandle of Florida we are experiencing 6-10 week (so they say)delays with drywall delivery. I have one of my guys calling around every morning to find out if anyone recieved a truck the night before because all the suppliers and "depots" are only selling on a first come basis and only then about 25-30 sheets per purchase. One of my drywall contractors, who normally is hanging and finishing about 10 houses at a time was telling me that he has about 25 projects backlogged because of the shortage. On the bright side we are getting all the patch and touch-up work done in a timely fashion. I am curious to know if there is a part of the country flush with drywall.
*Peter,I'm wondering the same thing. I remember the shortages of 10 or 12 yrs ago and that turned out to be a stunt to raise prices. They had shortages everywhere and some mills were closed down to help build the shortage. They are telling me that because of mild weather and almost no slow down in project starts this past winter, the mills had know time to build a stock pile as they do in normal years. This is why I'm getting concerened about what other materials will be in short supply. Prices are bound to keep rising as shortages grow. Maybe this is what will finally end this boom time in the housing industry.
*K, what part of Va. Md. doesn't seem bad yet, but prices are up.