Rising Costs of Housing

Floor Speech

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Mr. COSTA. Madam Speaker, I rise today to bring attention to the increased cost of building materials, creating an affordability crisis for housing in America.

This is, in part, because the COVID-19 pandemic has played a significant role in harming our country's supply of lumber and building materials. In addition, tariffs with Canada, along with long-term reductions of domestic timber harvesting, have exacerbated the price increases.

According to the National Association of Home Builders, prices of materials to build houses, like oriented strand boards, are up more than 400 percent since last spring. The average price of lumber has quadrupled.

This supply cost has increased the price of a new house, a new single-family home, by nearly $40,000 per unit.

I urge Congress and the Biden administration to take action to address the lumber supply chain, such as increasing domestic harvesting of timber and negotiating new lumber agreements with Canada. This is a way we can effectively reduce the cost of housing. We need to build more housing.

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