ALL YEAR

KENTUCKY WOODLAND OWNERS CAN PROFIT

FROM HIGHER HARDWOOD TIMBER PRICES

Kentucky woodland owners who bring in a professional forester before harvesting, can reap even more benefits from record high hardwood saw timber prices. Information is the landowner's best avenue to determine the true value of a timber stand and, receive this value at harvest.

In many instances, the average landowner doesn't have a basic understanding of what characteristics affect the potential value of hardwood timber. Professional foresters, who know the value of such characteristics as, distance to the mill, loggers' abilities, the timber quality and quantity, the species present and the topography. All of these factors can help the owner determine the highest possible stand value and attract the most potential buyers.

Professionals who follow timber sales results indicate that a woodland owner receives many more dollars for timber harvested, when a professional forester is involved in the negotiations. The value added to the final timber sale price far outweighs the cost of the forester's services.

Saw timber prices can be misleading because loggers have different criteria for the value of timber. As a result, any two buyers can view a stand of timber and have two completely different quoted values. In recent months, quarterly prices for hardwood saw timber, sold on the stump, in the south, have reached all-time highs, according to a national woodland owners newsletter.

For a forest landowner who has timber to sell, here are three leading indicators to help in aiding how to capture the highest prices for that timber. First, how well is the over all economy. General tendices are that a strong economy will see higher demands on forest products, products such as remodeling of interiors and exteriors of homes and businesses and packaging materials used to ship newly manufactured products.

Secondly. Current housing starts. New housing starts mean more than the lumber and materials to build the house. The increase in new homes being built also creates more demand for hardwood used in floors, staircases, and the new furniture for these homes.

A third indicator is usually geared to the seasons of the year and the weather that is associated with the seasons. Long periods of wet weather will keep loggers from harvesting trees and lower the inventory at mills. Major regional catastrophes such as tornados and ice storms can lower the supply of timber in one area and increase the demand in other areas. Indeed, the value of your timber is very variable and assistance from a forester will better equip you to better understand the true value that should be received at a timber sale.