Question
I am looking to buy some land and it has a lot of pine trees on it, and a friend said I might could have them cut into lumber to use when I build a house. Is this true and if so can you steer me i the right direction on if this is beneficial financially or not ?  Thanks

Answer
It will depend on the size of the trees and the availability of a saw mill to cut the lumber. The wood can be used for framing but if it is to be used as finished wood it will need to be planed. There are small saw mill operators that will cut the logs into lumber for a price per 1000 board feet (some of these are portable mills and come to land and do the sawing.) I would call the State Forestry agency and ask them for help-they can give advice after looking at the standing timber on the size and should be able to give you names of saw mills that can do this type work. The other thing to consider is getting the trees cut and to the mill. It may just be best to sell the trees and use the proceeds to buy lumber. If you do this I would suggest you hire a Consultant Forester to bid off the timber so you will get the best price for your trees. The State Forestry can give you names of good consultants. Their number should be in your local phone book.