18 



TIMBER TRENDS EST THE UNITED STATES 



RESIDENTIAL CONSTRUCTION IN THE UNITED STATES, 1920-2000 



3200 



2400 



1500 



800 



^ 



.■>< 



All dwellings 



^ 



^ 



^ 



^ 



•^' Multi-Family 

 Dwellings 



1920 1940 1960 



Source: U.S. Departments of Commerce ond Agriculture 



1980 2000 



Figure 9 



household formation and income data from the 

 ORRRC Study Report No. 23." It is, however, 

 appreciably below a "medium" estimate of 109.6 

 million units in a recent report by Resources for 

 the Future, Inc.'^ 



Increased Proportion of 

 Mulfifamily Units Expected 



The amounts and kinds of wood products used 

 per dwelling unit vary considerably between 

 single-family, two-family, and multifamily struc- 

 tures. Because of such differences, trends in types 

 of buildings constructed are of major significance 

 in projecting timber demands. 



Single-family dwelling units have long been of 

 primary importance in residential construction in 

 the United States (table 8 and fig. 9). During the 

 period 1920-60 single-family dwellings made up 

 between 66 and 92 percent of all dwelling units 

 constructed annually, with an average of 79 

 percent for the period. This average is expected 



" Outdoor Recreation Resources Review Commission 

 Staff, National Planning Association, and U.S. Depart- 

 ment of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Projections to 

 the Years 1976 and 2000: Economic Growth, Population, 

 Labor Force, and Leisure, and Transportation, 1962. 

 (ORRRC Study Report No. 23). 



'■ Resources for the Future, Inc., Resources in America's 

 Future, Patterns of Requirements and Availabilities, 1960- 

 2000, p. 621. The Johns Hopkins Press, 1962. 



to decline substantially with an increase in the 

 relative importance of multifamily structures. 



During the late 1920's multifamily housing 

 accounted for nearly a third of the dwelling units 

 constructed but in the 1930's and 1940's, multi- 

 family housing dropped to an average of about 12 

 percent of all new construction. In recent years 

 multifamily housing construction has again in- 

 creased in importance and in 1962 composed about 

 29 percent of all dwelling units started. 



While there is much diversity in views regarding 

 future trends, it seems likely that construction of 

 multifamily housing will continue at higher levels 

 than in the past. This expectation is based on 

 such factors as the increasing density of population, 

 rising land values, the growing size of metro- 

 politan areas with attendant problems of commut- 

 ing, expansion of urban renewal programs, and 

 the prospective increase in numbers of young 

 families and older age groups. 



It has consequently been estimated that by 1980 

 multifamily housing will approximate 35 percent 

 of all dwelling units constructed, and 40 percent 

 by 2000 (table 8 and fig. 9). The "garden type" 

 of multifamily housing, i.e., structures of less than 

 4 stories and generally containing less than 50 

 dwelling units, has accounted for more than three- 

 fourths of all multifamily dwelling units built in 

 recent years, and this proportion has been assumed 

 for the future. 



