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Are you down with OSB? It stands for oriented strand board. It’s used in construction similar to the way plywood is used—for roofs, subfloors, etc.
A client of mine used to be an OSB trader. He’s stepped away from that a bit lately, but like any former pro, he still follows his team, so to speak. He tells me prices for OSB are at or near 2008-pre-real estate crash levels. That doesn’t mean he’s predicting a crash. He’s just telling me the lay of the land. Great conversation.
He also tells me that as commodity prices rise, farmland ownership is getting more attractive. But, if you’re not a farmer, it’s a challenge to make the numbers work. Scale certainly helps, I added, noting that Bill Gates is the largest owner of farmland in America. Gates knows a thing or two about money or at least has a lot of crumbs to spread around. It’s fun making money.
Gathering intelligence all day long from successful Americans like you is FUN too. You give me a beautiful picture of life in your neck of the woods. I know a lot of folks just like you who’ve made great money-quietly. As Warren Buffet reminds us, there’s a lot of wonderful small businesses scattered about this country.
Now, I would never compare myself to Warren Buffet—we don’t share the same politics. But the man knows business—especially his. And if business is good, we all know how hard that SECRET is to keep. Thank you for trusting me with yours.
Action Line: Don’t bet the ranch on predictions. But do pay attention to information—to what’s going on all around you and across the country. I’m not sure where OSB prices go from here, but I sure do listen to what the pros like you are telling me.
Originally posted on Your Survival Guy.
