This Is Why Christmas Trees Are so Expensive This Year

It’s the most wonderful time of the year. For many, that means buying and bringing a live Christmas tree into their home. However, for New Yorkers that can be a rather expensive proposition. A $6,500 proposition, to be exact.

According to the New York Post, one Manhattan Christmas tree dealer, Soho Trees, is selling a 20-foot Fraser Fir for a whopping $6,500. That means the tree is $325 per foot.

While that may be shocking, what is perhaps more surprising is the fact that the tree farm is currently sold out of that size.

“We’re sold out,” Scott Lechner, sales manager of the Soho Trees lot, plainly told the Post, noting most of the massive trees end up in penthouses and building lobbies.

Though these trees are specifically meant for the ultra-wealthy and corporations, it appears all Christmas trees are a little more expensive this year. And that’s thanks in large part to a small drop in supply and an even higher demand.

"The supply is still strong, but so is the demand,'' Sara Vera, data analyst at Square, told USA Today. "So we’ll likely continue to see tree prices slightly increase this season as we have for the last four in a row, making 2019 the most expensive season for Christmas trees in history.''

%image1

According to Vera, Christmas trees jumped in price by 23 percent between 2015 and 2018. The average Christmas tree in 2019 will likely set people back $78. Even artificial trees are seeing a price increase, averaging $20 more this year than last.

However, if you want to save you still can. You’ll just have to wait it out. According to USA Today, prices are projected to drop 29 percent on Christmas trees the week before the holiday. You could even score a tree for just $50 on Christmas Eve.

What’s causing this new demand? According to the experts, it’s because people simply still crave the real thing, and want to make more eco-conscious decisions, like choosing the real deal over plastic fakes.

"While consumers once valued convenience over all else, we now see the rise of an eco-conscious consumer who questions where something came from, how it was made, and the impact that purchase may have on the environment,'' O'Connor additionally told USA Today. "Real trees are just part of this trend."