US housing market new hurdles: Higher lumber and material prices

Rising mortgage rates aren’t the housing market’s only problem. Higher prices for building materials are boosting construction costs and busting renovation budgets. The data-center boom and disruptions at the world’s second-largest copper mine have pushed the metal’s prices to records. Lumber prices are up because of import taxes and sawmill closures. The Iran war has shocked fuel and chemical markets and boosted prices for resins and plastics as well as the costs of delivering materials such as wallboard and cement to work sites. Taken together, these rising input costs are adding to ...