Most of our clients believe that one of our greatest contributions to them is our marketing skill when it comes to selling timber and land. The results are generally a reflection of our intent and the comprehensive disciplined approach we use to serve our clients. Our timber marketing style and expertise generally result in prices that are the top of the market at any point in time. I have compared our timber sales with the averages reported by the Louisiana Office of Forestry since 1979. We consistently have obtained an average price 23% more for our clients than the state averages. The margins were larger when markets were improving and smaller when markets were declining.

A number of studies have found that landowners get significantly better prices for their timber if they use professional forestry assistance. The most detailed study I have found is one conducted by Ian A. Munn at Mississippi State University and E. Carlyle Franklin at North Carolina State University. They compared timber sale income received by landowners who used consulting foresters with the income to landowners who used "free" forestry services of industry sponsored Landowner Assistance Programs (LAP) or those offered by state and extension services. The study used 298 timber sales: 105 sales were handled by consulting foresters and 193 were non-consultant sales. After making adjustments for timber volumes, quality, and a number of other considerations, they found that landowners using consulting foresters received 20% more income per thousand board feet than the landowners who used the free forestry services available to them. This is well above the rates consulting foresters charge for their services. I found this research conclusion to be interesting and thought provoking. If you call or write, I will be happy to supply you with a copy of this report.

There is a combination of factors at work that would result in these findings. While free forestry advice from any source is certainly helpful in most cases, a consulting forester has no conflict of interest to impede his desire to serve his client. He joins with his client with the intent to serve him to the best of his ability. For a number of reasons, that conviction is not found in the free forestry services offered to landowners. The higher prices consulting foresters get for their clients are basically a reflection of the joining together in intent. We concentrate on the process of each task given to us, whether it's conducting a sale, planting a tree, preparing an appraisal or writing a forest management plan. Accuracy and completeness in each task is our methodology, but I believe that aligning our priorities with those of our clients is the real reason that the results end up being favorable to all concerned.

Free professional forestry advice is generally more helpful than none at all. Service foresters play a significant role to landowners in education and can help in marketing efforts for landowners who have tracts too small to engage the services of a consulting forester. However, a consulting forester who joins with his client with no underlying conflict in thought or desire will provide the forestry marketing services in a manner that brings the best results for his clients.

Local factors affecting the stumpage markets include the windstorm in February, 1998, that blew down so much timber in East Texas. The USFS has been salvaging a million board feet of pine sawtimber a day. Much of the salvage timber has been coming into mills in Louisiana. The salvage work is beginning to slow down and will come to an end this fall as the downed trees are beginning to lose weight and decay. The worst drought in Louisiana's history has affected every living thing. My heart goes out to the farmers. Many of the trees planted last winter succumbed to the drought. It is amazing that any of them survived. Timber operators have been able to harvest timber in places that are normally too wet, allowing mills to have an abundant supply of timber this year. Plum Creek closed their plywood plant in Joyce and are in the midst of constructing a state-of-the-art sawmill that will use smaller logs. Willamette's plywood plant in Zwolle is back on-line after a fire closed them down earlier this year. Boise Cascade is closing their sawmill at Fisher.

We are beginning to see some renewed interest by the mills in pine sawtimber. I expect that the prices will improve this winter and spring. It may be a while before they reach the highs we saw last year. Japan will have to bite the bullet, much as we did in the Reagan years, in order to cure their economy. It will take them several years to work out of their financial problems.

I expect timber markets to improve somewhat during 1999 - 2000. The thing that timber sellers must keep in mind is that we have a strong domestic economy. I have seen bad times as well as good ones and can tell you that the best time for selling timber is when our economy is strong. The best advice I can give you is to consult your trusted forest advisor to help guide you in the present and give you a clear direction for the future in managing your timber.

OSB and plywood prices in August improved to nearly all-time highs. There have also been some recent improvements in the prices for lumber that occurred early in the 3^rd quarter of this year. Production of lumber and panels has been relatively high, close to last year's record production.

Hardwood sawtimber prices were excellent this spring and early summer. Prices have waned some since then but demand for furniture is strong. I expect the hardwood sawtimber markets to gradually improve this next year. The pine pulpwood markets have been pretty good this year. Hardwood pulpwood prices have been terrible, if you could get the timber sold at all. The markets for hardwood pulpwood will probably continue to be depressed throughout the next year or two due to the weak markets in Asia. Strong domestic consumption of paper products has helped the paper companies this year.