Investopedia: Signs Of Dry Rot In The Building Market

It is easy to get confused and frustrated trying to figure out the housing and homebuilding market these days. A company like Toll Brothers (NYSE:TOL) can seem to be doing a little better, only to see news a few weeks later about dour housing starts or hear disappointing news from Lender Processing Services (NYSE:LPS) about the state of foreclosures. 

Adding fuel to the fire is Friday's news from Universal Forest Products (Nasdaq:UFPI) that their traditional peak selling season was disappointing and the lumber market is in tough shape. While bad news at UFPI does not guarantee bad news for Pulte (NYSE:PHM), Lowe's (NYSE:LOW), USG (NYSE:USG) or American Woodmark (Nasdaq:AMWD), it does offer up evidence that the long-hoped for recovery is still waiting to bloom.

When a Peak Becomes a Valley
The period from March to May is supposed to be some of the strongest months in the year for Universal Forest Products, a producer of lumber and various building products. Unfortunately, the company announced last Friday that year-to-date sales were down 9.5% through May, retail sales were down 15% and the lumber market declined for 11 straight weeks during what should have been a strong selling period.


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