Usual growth leaders absent from recovery New York Times “Why has the job picture been so bleak in the current recovery? A large part of the problem can be traced to unusual weakness in two categories: construction jobs and government jobs.” 9 tricks for creating a super model HousingZone.com “Believe it or not, if you [...]

We’ve talked a lot here about who today’s home-buying customers are. Are they young? Old? Families? Empty nesters? Etc. But what if you have no idea who they are? It’s important to watch trends closely, but sometimes it seems like people don’t even know what they want. We found an article on BUILDER that goes [...]

With the housing market continuing to decline it’s not difficult to guess at what keeps people from buying: it’s the economy, stupid! With people being laid off, working at reduced pay or worrying about getting laid off, fear is a powerful motivator for letting houses sit on the market. But it’s not the only thing. Over at [...]

It’s a fact: nothing is certain by death and taxes, and before we die, we will (hopefully!) be old. Old age means various physical and mental changes, and with more and more Baby Boomers joining the ranks of the 65 and over crowd everyday, universal design is something builders and remodelers should be thinking about. It’s [...]

With a new year just barely begun, it’s time to think of some resolutions. In addition to all the personal ones you may have made, it’s always a good idea to think about what sort of professional resolutions you can make. Here are a few ideas. Focus on marketing. Getting the word out can differentiate [...]

…then beggars would ride. The old children’s nursery rhyme seems to have some resonance in this current housing market. Two recent report from Housing Giants and Professional Remodeler offer semi-conflicting reports about where the housing market is going and Americans’ views of what home ownership means. Housing Giants reports that demand is going up for [...]

Marketing Tips for Green  Homes EcoHome “Energy efficiency, water savings, and health issues are the three green hot buttons that most consumers respond to, a panel of industry experts told attendees during the Greenbuild International Conference & Expo in Chicago. But officials of Pulte Group, American Standard, and USA Today also said that buyers not [...]

Saving Costs Residential Architect “Now more than ever, architects who hope to increase their market share must respect their clients’ limits. More importantly, they need a clear understanding of costs, a process flexible enough to adjust as the project evolves, and the creative know-how to do more with less.” Pending Home Sales Rose 10.4% in [...]

We recently talked about smaller home construction outlasting the current recession. Obviously finances are a concern for many people right now (think of the heating bills on those McMansions!) and a smaller footprint just makes sense. An article called “Downsizing the American Dream” on USA Today gave some more specifics: According to leading architect Sarah [...]

The New Water Cooler BUILDER “Builders are slowly revising their perceptions about social media being time consuming to sustain and difficult to track. Builders that dip into these waters also realize that social media don’t sell houses, at least not in the traditional ways other advertising and marketing do. Social media’s power lies in its [...]