CoreLogic HPI Report: CoreLogic Reports August Home Prices Continue to Rise but a Slow May Be on the Horizon
CoreLogic Reports August Home Prices Increased by 5.5 Percent Year Over Year, Homeowners Expect Sale of Current Home to Fund Downpayment for Next Purchase Homeowners waiting to sell, hoping to afford larger downpayment on next home Nevada and Idaho were the only states to post double-digit annual price growth in August ...
Strategies for Timing the Market
By Kristine Smale, Vice President Our clients frequently ask, “When is the market turning, and how should I plan for the inevitable downturn?” To answer their question, we advise our clients to assess their tolerance for risk, their short- and long-term investment horizons, their competitive positioning, and their capital...
Building a Better Home
Energy efficiency takes on larger role as builders compete for buyers who value conservation By DON NEFF Designing and building an energy efficient home is not rocket science, but requires knowledge, experience, and expertise, including careful coordination of your team. According to a National Association of Home Builders...
Surviving the Storm in Style
Building homes that offer curb appeal and weatherization to survive a possible housing bubble burst By BRIANNA FRIES The beginning of September tends to mark a time of year when the home buying season slows down. School is back in session, families are settling in for the year, and the industry is already bracing for the start of...
Don’t Call It a Downturn
As long as the economy stays healthy, there is no reason to fear a downturn By GLEN RENNER Each month, HomeSphere, in partnership with investment bank BTIG, takes the temperature of our builder members – nearly 2,500 local homebuilders that each build an average of 100 homes per year. We ask them about sales, traffic, pricing,...
Dissecting Myths About Millennial Homebuyers
What Millennials really want in a home is affordability and smaller, shared spaces By ALI WOLF I became obsessed with studying Millennials a few years back after attending session after session of hearing Boomers tell me, a Millennial, what my generation wants. At a certain point, I realized very few of Millennial “wants”...
The Strongest Growth Since 2014, But Will it Last?
An outline of housing market data for the year so far, and expectations for the future By PATRICK DUFFY It was certainly good news to hear that the initial estimate for GDP growth of 4.1 percent in the second quarter of 2018 was the fastest since the third quarter of 2014. This recent rate of growth compares to 2.2 percent in the...
Sales from Referrals: Two Overlooked Opportunities
You need more than home quality to drive sales from referrals By BOB MIRMAN Twisted my knee a couple of days ago. Not sure how. Probably doing something extremely strenuous, like getting into my golf cart. So, at 5:25 this morning, I limped out to my community spa for some whirlpool action. Turned the timer-dial to 20-minutes. Nothing...
Yes, Curb Appeal is Still Important to Today's Buyer!
Today’s Millennial buyers are searching for homes that reflect their personality and lifestyle By GREGG TAYLERSON You never get a chance to make a first impression. This not only applies to people, but to real estate as well. But what is “curb appeal” and why it is so important? Simply put, curb appeal is the first impression a...
Technology Can Help Solve America’s Infrastructure Challenges
Investing in Maglev technology would boost commerce, while relieving overcrowded airways and highways Can technology provide the solution to America’s infrastructure challenge? You bet it can. Will it? It depends on if we find the political courage to make real, substantial investments in our future. For example, let’s look at one...
Redeveloping Brownfield Sites for Energy-Saving Advantages
Zoning for small cottage developments offers energy-efficient value for developers By KATHERINE AUSTIN There is a tremendous challenge we face in the business of producing housing in this country. The lack of affordability has reached a critical stage, specifically in the most desirable regions. Not only did the recession put an...
Observing Possible Changes Ahead For the Title 24 Building Energy Efficiency Standards
California’s residential ZNE by 2020 mandate was and continues to be a goal rather than a requirement for new construction, as reflected in the proposed changes to the code By DAN KREKELBERG At the start of 2017, new Title 24 Building Energy Efficiency Standards went into effect for residential construction in California that...
Resiliency for Homes in an Uncertain World
How to prepare for the unexpected? Be resilient By HEATHER ROSENBERG In traditional planning and design, we look ahead by looking to the past, despite knowing the future will be different. For example, while we’ve had disasters in the past, the combined effects of climate change, population growth, and urbanization will cause the...
Greener Postures: The Future of 55-Plus Senior Living Calls for Total Sustainability
The definition of what’s green is expanding to ensure structures that are environmentally, economically, and socially sustainable By Mary Cook The Baby Boomers that pushed America towards its first environmental awakening in the late 1960s are now hitting retirement age. And the issues they put aside as they raised families and...
Sustainability is the Smart Solution
The importance of eco-friendly designs and smart home technology is imperative for attracting today’s buyers by Abby Pittman Green sustainable homebuilding is creeping through the crevices of the industry, and builders should be prepared to catch up. The soon-to-be biggest trend, implementing sustainable and smart home...The Rise of Sustainability in Luxury Home
Big, luxury homebuilders are focusing on sustainability more than ever by Megan Wild Within the last 10 years, the demand for eco-friendly houses has soared. This is partly due to increased sensitivity to climate change among homebuyers and their awareness of global warming’s impact on wildlife and the environment. However, it is...
Barb VanderMolen, A. O. Smith vice president-finance, receiving recognition with a Women in Manufacturing STEP Ahead Award
Barbara L. VanderMolen, A. O. Smith vice president-finance for North America Water Heaters, will be recognized by The Manufacturing Institute with a Women in Manufacturing STEP (Science, Technology, Engineering and Production) Ahead Award on April 10. The STEP Ahead Awards honors women who have demonstrated excellence and leadership in...
The Silver Bullet for Reducing Litigation
It’s time to stop shrugging off responsibility for everything that happens to your homes after the first year BY DICK BRYAN As a builder offering the standard 1-year home warranty, you know that things are generally pretty good for that first year: Homeowners contact you for general repairs; you send your trades or service...
Maracay Homes’ 10-Step Plan to Improved Customer Ratings
10 steps Maracay Homes followed that helped improve their “Willingness to Recommend” rating from a 73 percent at the beginning of the year, to an 85 percent by the end BY JEFF ESCHLIMAN Since starting the Eliant customer experience management process a bit over a year ago, our scores on the “Key Measures Index” have improved...
Marketing and Selling Homes Through a Technological Experience
Majority of homebuyers today focus primarily on online resources when researching homes BY LISA MEYLOR Emotional aspects of the home shopping journey have stayed the same throughout the years. We all want to find a place to create memories and have a sense of belonging. What has changed, however, is the way we shop for homes....
Being Eco-Adaptive® with Developments
Next to air, water is the most important thing on Earth BY PATRICK R. FUSCOE Without air you are dead in two minutes, and without water you are dead in a few days. You can go months without food or shelter, so water is pretty important. Only 1 percent of the Earth’s water is drinkable, so you would think it would be most important to...
Data, Data Everywhere/Nor Any Drop to Drink
Making Sense of the Economic Data Deluge BY PATRICK DUFFY In his lengthy 1798 poem “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner,” Samuel Taylor Coleridge tells the story of a group of sailors stranded at sea, surrounded by salt water they cannot drink, writing, “Water, water everywhere, nor any drop to drink.” This famous line also...
Natural Stone, a Sustainable Material in Architectural and Design Projects
Widely recognized for its strength, durability, and longevity, natural stone imparts a timeless quality to the built environment By JAMES A. HIEB, CAE In recent years, advances in technology have resulted in the availability of a wealth of new materials for use in architectural and design projects. While these manmade products are...
5 Game Changers for Building and Development in 2018
The most important real estate market trends for multifamily housing in 2018, especially given tax reform By MARY COOK Game-changers, especially in the housing market, can be devastating — a lesson learned from the 2008 mortgage crisis. A decade later, another major game-changer is coming our way, thanks to the Tax Cut and Jobs Act...
Target Baby Boomers with Active Adult Communities
Active Adult communities are becoming more and more popular as Baby Boomers transition into retirement BY JEFF MEYERS Baby Boomers are in a good place financially and drive a lot of today’s housing activity. The all-time highs in the stock market and positive equity for many homeowners disproportionately benefit the Boomers as many...
Amenities are the Key to Enticing Buyers
More and more people are interested in moving strictly because of the possibility that there may be something better out there by Jeff Meyers What products do your buyers want in their new homes? Meyers Research can help you understand who your consumers are, what they value, and, most importantly, the products they’re willing to...
Infrastructure Opportunities for Builders
Contractors’ services are evolving, and with construction making up the majority of project costs, they should have a greater role in project development by Manuel H. Lazerov It has now become apparent that the federal government is severely cutting back on its assistance to state and local government, especially in the development...
Feng Shi for Modern Sustainability
Long before sustainability was a thing, Feng Shui enabled people to make the most of every scarce resource available to them. Some would argue that Feng Shui may be the original method of building a sustainable home. That being said, many of the methods of Feng Shui are just as relevant today as they ever were. Feng Shui is an art and...
CoreLogic Reports Home Prices Rose More Than 6 Percent Year Over Year for the Sixth Consecutive Month in January
Contact Information Below CoreLogic Reports Home Prices Rose More Than 6 Percent Year Over Year for the Sixth Consecutive Month in January Nevada, Utah and Washington Start the Year With Largest Price Gains In January, 48 Percent of the Top 50 Markets Were Considered Overvalued Home Prices Projected to Increase by 4.8...
Downtown LA’s 90014 Heads the List of Fastest-Gentrifying ZIPs since the Turn of the Millennium
The areas were most affected by gentrification since the turn of the millennium BY BALAZS SZEKELY of RENTCafe There’s a lot of things an urban area can and should aspire to excel in. This is not one of them. Yet, even if gentrification is not something to strive for, it happens all the more often—and as there are ways to...
How Lennar And CalAtlantic Can Embrace Business Transformation Post-Merger
Often times, as companies experience a season of growth, there are a variety of areas in which carrying out ordinary tasks becomes increasingly complex at an operational level By Mark Holenstein It has often been said that change is necessary to allow for business expansion and innovation. Now more than ever, businesses in the...
Landscape Design Plays an Integral Part of Your Living Space
In order to provide those unique garden visions, many developers are leaning on innovative landscape architecture firms to help bring new outdoor living ideas to life By DAVID B. SALKOWITZ, RLA, ASLA, CLARB If the heart of a home lives within its walls, then its spirit is surely defined by exterior landscaping that inspires the soul....
Lots of Lots Required: Addressing the Who and How
The top 100 builders dominate most of the major markets, but they are only building 35 percent of the new housing stock By GREG VOGEL There are many trends evolving related to the land and lot markets across the U.S. We will need to build approximately 3.5 million single-family homes and the lots they sit on over the next four...
How to Build Your Brand Before You Build Your New Home Community
When your homes are finally built, you’ll be established—and ready to sell to familiar buyers By Barry Zoeller As the largest and one of the oldest stretches of private land in California, Tejon Ranch remains essentially unchanged since its formation under a Mexican Land Grant in 1843. The vast majority of its terrain is...
Embracing the Possibilities of PERSONALIZATION
Builder and Developer’s 2017 Builder of the Year is Atlanta-based Ashton Woods Homes who proves that personalization is key to the home buying experience By Carina Calhoun Photography Courtesy of Ashton Woods The master of design-driven homes, Atlanta-based Ashton Woods Homes is one of the nation’s largest private homebuilders....
If You’re Not Predicting the Future, You’re Living in The Past
Our industry has been slow to move into the realm of big data By GLENN RENNER In this magazine last month, we forecast that 2018 would be a watershed year for smart home adoption. The trend will be catapulted by interconnectivity and analytics-based automation, which simplify the user experience. This month, we have the same...
A Clean Slate for the New Year
Moving forward with durability in mind after a tumultuous 2017 By RON NESTOR, AIA 2017 was a great year to be in the news business. It seemed to me that "disruption" was the word of the year, as so many tumultuous events filled the calendar. Major earthquakes in Mexico, monstrous hurricanes in the Caribbean, furious fires in the...
More Innovation in Sustainable Homebuilding to Come in 2018
2018 will continue to ride the coattails of a strong sustainable 2017 By SERGIO FLORES Overall, the sentiment for U.S. homebuilding is strong. The industry ended 2017 on a strong note; builder confidence reached a 10-month high in November, despite facing natural disasters a few months prior. And to what could we credit the...
Redeveloping Brownfield Sites for Energy-Saving Advantages
Zoning for small cottage developments offers energy-efficient value for developers By KATHERINE AUSTIN There is a tremendous challenge we face in the business of producing housing in this country. The lack of affordability has reached a critical stage, specifically in the most desirable regions. Not only did the recession put an...
The Ever-Expanding Green Movement
From record improvements and cultural relevance in 2017, what will 2018 bring to the green movement? By Jason Forrest The worst-kept secret in homebuilding is that the green movement gained more steam in 2017. Where it’s headed in 2018 could be even more interesting—and not just the technology side of it—but also the culture...
Housing 2018: More Sales and More Risk
Evaluating the current state of the market and potential risks at near-term, medium-term, and long-term horizons By JOHN BURNS and KATE SEABAUGH We expect another solid year in 2018. • Shifting demand: While housing demand should soften due to the economy reaching full employment, we expect the softening to occur in the...
Peering into 2018: The Outlook for U.S. Housing Markets
Erosion of housing affordability likely to spread to more markets in the coming years By DR. FRANK E. NOTHAFT A central theme for the 2018 housing market will be the continuing erosion of housing affordability, an issue that will permeate a growing list of American neighborhoods. Today, housing affordability is already a major...
Lots of Lots Required: Addressing the Who and How
The top 100 builders dominate most of the major markets, but they are only building 35 percent of the new housing stock By GREG VOGEL There are many trends evolving related to the land and lot markets across the U.S. We will need to build approximately 3.5 million single-family homes and the lots they sit on over the next four...
The Coming Change in Housing
As buyer preferences change and costs rise, builders and developers have to shed the traditions of production housing to succeed By JOHN MARTIN In the mid 1970s, a revolution of sorts began in Irvine that transformed the housing market. In the burgeoning Northwood subdivision, a sea of 50 x 100 foot lots plotted side-by-side like a...
Tax Reform: The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly
By Ali Wolf The consolidated tax plan is out, and the final vote is likely to occur this week. We are relieved to learn that under the new plan, many of the housing-related components remain relatively favorable to the industry. In fact, the National Association Of Homebuilders came out this weekend in support of the current bill. In...
Young Leaders Set Course for Future of Land Development
Urban Land Institute works to actively address the changing and challenging industry of real estate and land development By DENISE ASHTON More and more, young professionals are taking bold, unprecedented steps into the world of urban planning, bringing energy, a willingness to learn and an unbridled savvy of all things tech to a...
The B&D Interview – Ken Balogh, CEO and President, Ashton Woods
Ken joined Ashton Woods in 2009 as Executive Vice President – Operations covering Dallas, Houston and Phoenix, and was promoted to President and Chief Executive Officer for the Company at the end of 2010. In his more than eight years at the company, Ken has grown the business from $350 million to more than $1.2 billion in revenue per...
The 5 Closet Design Trends that Sell
Closets: every home has them and homebuyers everywhere wish they could be better. Whether it’s storing more clothes or doing double-duty as a dressing room, homebuyers want and expect more from their space. Here are five closet trends that are all about making life easier and satisfying homebuyers. 1. ADJUSTABILITY. Homebuyers want...
