Redwood big in R&R

By Tom Ingham President Simpson Timber Co.

FTER an improved 1988, general market activity in redwood is expected to be slightly offin 1989. While dramatic shifts in interest rates are not foreseen, slowly rising rates will likely influence new home construction, with as much as a 120lo decline in new home starts.

On the positive side, however, one of redwood's biggest markets, home repair and remodeling, should experience the same strong demand next year. According to the Census Bureau, Americans spent $37.3 billion on alterations and improvements on single family homes in 1987. In fact, homeowners spent a third as much fixing up existing homes as building new onesa trend which augurs well for redwood, a mainstay of the do-it-yourself market.

Given redwood's high performance standards, and, to a lesser degree the public's concern over toxics, homeowners and contractors are likely to look at redwood as an increasingly viable alternative to treated wood for deck construction. As a result, we expect to see growth in demand for redwood decking products outside of the