CHARLOTTE, NC - Since the beginning of the pandemic, timber prices have tripled and are still high, although stock futures have fallen slightly. For example, a year ago, the cost per thousand board feet was $350, and now the cost is $1,200.

According to the National Association of Home Builders, these high prices have led to a slowdown in sales of new and existing homes because the prices of some homes have been excluded from the market. Now, some people worry that another consequence is emerging, namely theft.

Charlotte-Mecklenburg police records show that in the last month alone, between May 3 and June 3, there were 16 wood thefts. In every report, the wood was stolen from the construction site. The police said they need to evaluate more data to understand whether these numbers are higher than usual.

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But Web Hatley's family has owned Queen City Lumber since 1946, and he said he wouldn't be surprised.

"Oh, I don't doubt it at all," Hartley said. "I know it will be a problem, because when you get a pile of plywood worth so much money, it will quickly disappear."

Related: Yes, timber shortages are real

In a police report, a house builder claimed that $4,700 worth of OSB was stolen. In another game, more than 160 two-by-four cards were swiped, worth $3,500.

Gone, valuable timber was stolen from the site of a Habitat for Humanity under construction.

According to police reports, the website has been attacked 3 times in the past month.

"Since I am here, I have never seen so many prices," said Hartley, who has never seen such high prices in the 37 years he has run the company.

“At first there was a shortage at the beginning of the pandemic, and the price even doubled, and then fell back for a while. We thought everything was fine, and then when everything started to open up, some prices tripled,” he said.

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For example, Hatley told WCNC that oriented stranded board (OSB) initially rose to US$20 but is now close to US$45 to US$50, while half-inch plywood was less than US$20 before the pandemic, but is now US$60. He said the pandemic has also caused a shortage of timber.

More reports on WCNC: The number of initial jobless claims in the United States drops to 444,000, a pandemic low

"You can't get materials, processed plywood, or oriented strand board across the board," he said.

Hartley admits that, like everyone else, he doesn't know when the high price of wood will finally start to fall — he said this may happen once people stop buying wood — but he said he hopes the price will fall soon.

"I hope it won't last too long, but I said it four or five months ago," he said.

 Contact Ashley Daley at adaley@wcnc.com and follow her on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

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