How much does a 4x8 sheet of plywood cost?

As of April 9, a basic SPF (spruce, pine, fir) two-by-four cost a record high of $1,132 per thousand board feet, according to the Ministry of Forests, Lands, Natural Resource Operations and Rural Development's weekly B.C. lumber price tracking.

This compares to an average of $532 a year ago and to $372 in pre-pandemic 2019. The price was up nearly $100 from a week earlier.

The price of standard plywood panels hit $1,223 per thousand board feet on April 9, up from $1076 a week earlier and twice the price from a year ago.

And there appears little relief in sight.

 In 2020, millennials made up the largest cohort of first-time buyers for the first time，So,  now having a large demographic entering the housing market that has nothing to do with the pandemic. So, it's very positive [for lumber producers]. Definitely through this year, there will not be a slowdown, and potentially also through 2022.

Lumber prices are now at all-time highs in both Canada and the US, and builders estimate the rising wood costs would nail an extra $10,000 to $20,000 onto the price of a new house.