You’re a builder. So what do you do? You build! And that’s probably where you concentrate most of your energy and attention. After all, it’s your skill and knowledge as a builder that make you valuable to your clients, right?

But wait — exactly who are your clients and what do they want?

BUILDER recently talked about this, asking if builders are really doing things in the right order. At the Hanley Wood Remodeling Leadership Summit, Michelle M. Mace of M3B Inc. and Teri Slavik-Tsuyuki of Newland Communities shared their thoughts on the subject, and BUILDER recapped their ideas. Some things we thought were particularly interesting:

• It’s not about what; it’s about who. Are you building great houses that no one is buying? Maybe it’s best to figure out who the occupants of those houses would be before you even swing a hammer.
• Time to put on your sales hat! How will what you build actually sell in a housing development? Think like a salesperson!
• According to Slavik-Tsuyuki, “30 percent of Newland’s buyer interest group is younger than 35, and 40 percent is 55 and older. So if all a builder is doing is creating homes for nuclear families with kids, it is missing a lot of the market.” This goes back to who your customers are. Maybe their kids are out of the house and they want something smaller and more manageable. Or if they don’t have children, they might not care about a big playroom.

Do you know exactly who your customers are? Could you give an answer about what they want if someone asked you?

On Thursday, we learned housing starts dipped 16.5 percent in April to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 853,000, according to the latest figures from HUD and the U.S. Census Bureau. The drop marks the lowest levels since November.

If the housing market is recovery like so many say it is, what should one make of the decline? Nick Timiraos at the Wall Street Journal has a theory we can get behind:

“The upshot is that Thursday’s housing report isn’t as much a signal that the sector is cooling—at least not until there are a few more of these reports—and instead a sign that the housing rebound isn’t going to unfold in a straight line.”

This is all part of the recovery — ebbs, flows and all.

Today, we are going directly to you, building professional, to get a reading on how you are feeling about the 2013 building season. Please take a moment to share your confidence level with the current marketplace:

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Choosing the best windows and doors for your home is a decision that can affect your quality of life on many levels. We all want aesthetically pleasing windows and doors that are built to perform and offer superior energy efficiency. But you can’t always have your cake an eat it, too.

With Integrity, however, you never have to trade beauty for brawn. Your home deserves more than a compromise.

To better prepare homeowners to purchase the right windows and doors, we are proud to introduce the all-new Decide With The Diamond section on IntegrityWindows.com. The section includes a four-part video series from home improvement expert and HouseSmarts TV host Lou Manfredini and walks homeowners through each key consideration, including materials, efficiency, design and value.

After you have viewed the videos, check back and tell us what you think!

How It’s Made: Low-E Glass
ECOHOME
“Low-E glazing falls into two broad categories: soft coat and hard coat. Both applications involve depositing a thin, transparent coating of silver or tin oxide on the glass surface to allow short-wavelength sunlight to pass through while blocking long-wavelength heat radiation. The difference between the two coatings lies in their application, which affects the glazing performance and durability.”

Scrap Mettle
Custom Home
“Yesterday’s mass-produced items are today’s one-offs, and using salvage in small doses can be a great way to get a custom look for less.”

Do shipping container houses make sense for disaster relief housing?
Treehugger
“Japanese architect Yatsutaka Yoshimura has designed what he calls the “ex-container project, in what Designboom says is a ‘response to calls for disaster relief housing after the 2011 earthquake and tsunami that ravaged Japan.’”

A combination of increased demand and limited inventory is driving up prices. Sound familiar? Well, we’re not writing about the housing market this time.

In case you haven’t noticed, lumber supplies are having difficulty keeping pace with the marketplace, which in turn is driving up prices. According to BuilderOnline.com, the Random Length Lumber Price Index has increased by more than 60% from late 2011 to March 2013.

The housing crash is at least partially to blame for the lumber supply logjam (“With the severe declines in housing over the past years, many building material manufacturers cut back production dramatically,” said NAHB chief economist David Crowe in February), as well as tight credit restrictions, which have made it difficult for producers to reopen plants.

But several factors are coming into play, including “permanent supply reductions—the loss of exports from Russia, the devastation of forests in the Northwest by mountain pine beetles, and harvest reductions ordered by the governments of Quebec and Ontario—ownership of more timberlands by investment organizations that are more focused on maximizing profits than on supplying mills; and increasing global demand for lumber in China, India, and other countries.”

One expert tells BuilderOnline.com the lumber shortage could be observed for at least five years.

As building pros, you know almost everything there is to know about the building world and building products.

But your residential customers? They might not be as up to date. And by the time they come to you, the level of knowledge and expertise they have can vary wildly. Some have researched carefully and know almost everything. Others are still unsure of exactly what it is that they need to do.

To help out with some window education, Integrity has created “Decide With The Diamond,” a learning series for homeowners. We have some great new videos with Lou Manfredini to help out with the window-buying process. Check them out and tell your customer!

Homebuyers always have and probably always will look to location, style and price above all when in purchase mode. The rest, one might say, is just gravy.

Of course, if the location, style and price check out, homebuyers then may be attracted by a home’s more alluring features. So much so that some buyers are will to pay a premium for just the right arrangements.

Using data from the National Association of Realtors, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed the 11 features that most homeowners were willing to pay more for. Taking things a step further, 24/7 Wall St. looked at how much buyers would be willing to pay for certain features. Here is what they found:

1. Central air conditioning — 69% ($2,520)
2. New kitchen appliances — 69% ($1,840)
3. Walk-in closet in master bedroom — 60% ($1,350)
4. Granite countertops — 55% ($1,620)
5. Hardwood floors — 54% ($2,080)
6. Ensuite master bath — 49% ($2,030)
7. Kitchen island — 48% ($1,370)
8. Stainless steel appliances — 41% ($1,850)
9. Home less than 5 years old — 40% ($5,020)
10. Eat-in kitchen — 40% ($1,770)

It’s important to note this data not only reflects the new home market but the re-sale market, as well. So while adding central air, kitchen appliances, granite countertops and hardwood floors might be a big price to stomach, it appears buyers not only desire those features — they are willing to have them at a premium.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency launched the ENERGY STAR® Most Efficient Program for the fenestration industry on January 1, 2013. The program is designed to recognize products that meet the highest energy-efficiency guidelines.

Integrity from Marvin Windows and Doors continues to outperform any window in the fiberglass/composite category with products from their Wood-Ultrex line named as Most Efficient by the EPA. As part of the EPA’s ENERGY STAR program, Most Efficient products have gone through rigorous testing and independent certification above and beyond regular ENERGY STAR certification. Homeowners buying Most Efficient products such as Integrity’s certified offerings will know that their purchases are among the most energy-efficient on the market.

Integrity Windows and Doors achieved the Most Efficient certification in several climate zones with its tripane Wood-Ultrex Series windows. Made with wood on the interior and Ultrex pultruded fiberglass on the exterior, these windows are energy efficient, tough and durable. Integrity’s pioneering Ultrex material offers a unique mix of performance characteristics that vastly outperforms roll-form aluminum, vinyl, and vinyl/wood composites.

Unlike many other tripane windows on the market, Integrity can achieve its Most Efficient certification without the use of any other filler gas besides argon — making it a cost-effective energy solution.  Three panes of glass and argon gas combine to create the ultimate in performance, beauty and strength. Integrity’s argon-filled tripane glass has U-factors of .18 to .20, which means that it has superior insulating properties, keeping heat inside the home to help lower heating bills.

Integrity is certified as Most Efficient in the Northern and North-Central Climate Zones. Available tripane window products from the Wood-Ultrex line include the Casement, Awning, Casement Picture and Casement Direct Glaze. These windows are available with all current product options such as grilles, hardware and exterior colors. As part of the Marvin family of companies, Integrity shares Most Efficient certification with its sister brand Marvin Windows and Doors.

A full list of qualifying products, performance values and ENERGY STAR® Most Efficient Program criteria are available at www.energystar.gov/mostefficient.

A team of top architects and designers have been busy at work on the first-ever HGTV Smart Home, a high-tech luxury home built on Paradise Key South Beach in Florida (just south of St. Petersburg.) The location of the home is important because the constant threat of destructive hurricanes forced the design team to think about durability in a major way.

The “smart” in HGTV’s Smart Home is a particular point of pride to Florida builder Glenn Layton.

“Before smart was smart, (my business partner) and I were using this term to describe best building practices: What’s the smart thing to do?” Layton says. “Are we going to do something because it looks better, or are we going to do something because it’s the right way to do it? The house, it’s not going to be an easy build, but it’s going to be a great build.”

Needing windows that offer beauty and brawn, the team chose Integrity. In the video above, you will see a wide variety of Integrity windows used throughout the home to continue the clean, sophisticated look while offering breathtaking surrounding coastal views.

We’re certainly flattered Integrity meets the smart standard for Layton and his team.

We can’t remember being this stunned by a kitchen material in a long time, but this gorgeous room is worth raving about. Using hammered silver for a cabinet material is unique and lovely, don’t you think? The way the light hits the cabinet in this photo makes it look almost like the whole kitchen is full of shimmering water and light.

We’d kill for this kitchen, but would the hammered silver ever get old? What about other metallics like copper bowls — would they not fit in? Would full sunlight on the cabinets cause temporary blindness? Or would their beauty overcome other objections?

Check out the rest of Glo’s slideshow for some other beautifully luxurious kitchens.

Image via Glo.