Professional Builder (1993) articles from April 2008

Professional Builder (1993) archives from April 2008

Price Check.(Internet services help to control economi budgets)(Editorial)
April 1, 2008... By Ann Matesi, Senior Contributing Editor Get creative with cost-effective solutions that add design flair - without compromising your product's affordable price tag. Thank the Internet, TV shows, special-interest publications, local...

Steamy Selections.(Gerber's Viper )(Moen's Rothbury suite )(California Faucets' StyleDrain)(Brief article)
April 1, 2008... Staff No Escaping Gravity Staff Gerber's Viper high-performance toilet line now uses the company's HP2 flushing technology. It delivers 600 to 800 grams of waste per flush, which, according to Gerber, is double the industry...

Building Character.(Housing industry and market )(Editorial)
April 1, 2008... By Ann Matesi, Senior Contributing Editor A North Carolina builder's neotraditional community captures buyers' hearts with the architectural diversity of a custom development. For Lanny Caldwell and David Schmidt, founding partners of...

How Grand Is Your Brand?(Construction industry and brand image)
April 1, 2008... By Paul Cardis, CEO, Avid Ratings Home builders' future success will depend largely on how well they've maintained their brands at the local level. Here's what you can do to shore up your image. If you think competition in the home...

Kill the Contingency!
April 1, 2008... By Bill Lurz, Senior Editor The need to sell an existing home should never stop a new-home sale. Here's how some builders work around it. Contingencies are killing the move-up market. Balky home shoppers often refuse to buy the new...

Head in the Media Sand.(Media and housing industry)(Editorial)
April 1, 2008... Paul Deffenbaugh, Editorial Director We can blame the media for our condition in the housing industry or we can pick our heads up and act now to control our own situation. In recent months, I have seen a lot of housing industry people...

Are You An Indispensable Employee?
April 1, 2008... By Rodney Hall, The Talon Group Enhance your value to your employer. I received a call today from a young man we placed several years ago with a northeast home builder. I assumed he'd been cut in another round of layoffs and was...

Flash Fixtures.
April 1, 2008... Staff Chill Out or Heat It Up Staff Designed with water filters, instant-chilled and instant-hot water systems in mind, Water Inc.'s LVH1200 uses twin levers that flank the base of its barrel-tipped spout for delivery. It sports a...

30 Mistakes not to make again.(methods of business management)
April 1, 2008... By Erin Erickson, Group Managing Editor The market will get better. Until it does, study this list and make sure you don't commit the same mistake twice. Most business articles tell you how to improve your business. Because we like to...

Welcome to Blogland.(usage of blogs by home builders)
April 1, 2008... By Erin Erickson, Group Managing Editor A home builder's guide to surviving Web 2.0 Thanks to self-publishing blogging platforms, anyone with opposable thumbs and an e-mail address can share their opinion about your company. Sound like...

5 Executive Faves.(management of Erik Froelich )
April 1, 2008... By Felicia Oliver, Senior Editor After 12 years in the real estate industry, former management consultant Erik Froelich has learned what it takes to get the job done right. During the most grueling of times, the general manager of the...

A Showcase Home for a Good Cause.(Editorial)(Brief article)
April 1, 2008... By Susan Bady, Senior Editor, Design Barenz Builders of Germantown, Wis., found a unique way to help adults and children with muscular dystrophy: a fund-raising event that lets people travel without leaving home. Last October, Barenz hosted...

It's Not All Bad.(Brief article)
April 1, 2008... By Jennifer Powell, Staff Writer Who said the housing market was untouchable? Some celebrities don't seem to think so and are diving in. If celebrities are willing to put their money on the housing industry, then maybe there's hope for...

Think about it.
April 1, 2008... Staff $10.5M Funding for training and job services, under California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, for residential construction workers and others who have been laid off as a result of the downturn in the housing market. $840,000...

Is Green Affordable?
April 1, 2008... By Scott T. Shepherd, PATH Partners You can create an affordable green house - if you consider the big picture. While energy-efficient and resource-efficient technologies are great, you're not saving much money or energy if you put...

Winners to the Podium.
April 1, 2008... By Nick Bajzek, Products Editor Our first-ever Best in Class Kitchen & Bath Survey represents our groundbreaking effort to figure out the top brands in the industry. Our readers rated manufacturers based on the awareness, use and...

Improve Customer Negotiations.
April 1, 2008... By John Rymer, New Home Knowledge Want better results? Define the salesperson-home buyer negotiation process. Ask builders what they hate most about the current market and chances are "prolonged negotiations with customers" will be...

Products: Cabinets.(SUPPLEMENT: Custom Builder)(Plain & Fancys Town and Country kitchen cabinets )(Brief article)
April 1, 2008... Staff Uptown Girl Staff Calling its latest cabinetry line "a mix of uptown elegance blended with a relaxed rural feel," Plain & Fancy 's Town & Country kitchen cabinets feature a mix-and-match style for creating something between...

The Kitchen Sink.(SUPPLEMENT: Custom Builder)(Editorial)
April 1, 2008... By Susan Bady, Senior Editor, Design Not convinced that a kitchen sink can be art? These examples might change your mind. In custom kitchens where the smallest detail is scrutinized, the sink is an opportunity for homeowners to express...

Modern Sanctuary.(SUPPLEMENT: Custom Builder)(Editorial)
April 1, 2008... By Sara Zailskas, Assistant Managing Editor A custom builder creates a spa bathroom that merges the outdoors with a private retreat. When custom builder and architect Phil Kean set out to create his ideal master bathroom for what would...

Green with Envy.(SUPPLEMENT: Custom Builder)(Greening of kitchens)(Editorial)
April 1, 2008... By Susan Bady, Senior Editor I have a love/hate relationship with my dishwasher. I love the convenience, but I hate the noise. It groans and swooshes its way through the wash and rinse cycles and is so loud I have to turn up the volume on...

Products: Kitchen Fixtures.(SUPPLEMENT: Custom Builder)
April 1, 2008... Staff Crossing the Threshold Staff Brizo's Trevi collection gets an upgrade with the new Trevi cross-handle version. The handle is available on the deck-mounted installations for kitchens and wall-mounted faucet selections for...

The K & B Selling Proposition.(SUPPLEMENT: Custom Builder)(Custom homebuilders can better manage customer service)(Editorial)
April 1, 2008... By Susan Bady, Senior Editor, Design Superbly designed and executed kitchens and master bathrooms can turn a "maybe" into a "yes." In today's market, great design and craftsmanship aren't enough to differentiate one high-priced custom...

Gold Standard.(SUPPLEMENT: Custom Builder)(2008 National Sales and Marketing Awards)(Brief article)
April 1, 2008... By Felicia Oliver, Senior Editor Not everyone's on a tight budget. These award winning designs found buyers - and won awards. Covering the National Sales and Marketing Awards gives us an opportunity to provide some much needed good...

Outdoor Living in the Cold.(SUPPLEMENT: Custom Builder)(Brief article)
April 1, 2008... By Felicia Oliver, Senior Editor With lots of Denver sunshine, these decks and patios are used nearly year-round. GOLD WINNER: Tradewinds at Southshore, Aurora, Colo. Best Unique or One-of-a-Kind Home When you think of outdoor...

Thoroughly Modern.(SUPPLEMENT: Custom Builder)(Wine Country Residence, California )(Editorial)
April 1, 2008... By Felicia Oliver, Senior Editor Traditional materials and contemporary design mesh at this mountain vista home. GOLD WINNER: Wine Country Residence, Paso Robles, Calif. Best Unique or One-of-a-Kind Home In many ways, it was a...

Luxury by the Sea.(SUPPLEMENT: Custom Builder)(Laing Luxury Homes)(Editorial)
April 1, 2008... By Felicia Oliver, Senior Editor A semi-custom home captures what wealthy empty nesters want. GOLD WINNER: The White Residence, Seacrest, Newport Coast, Calif. Best Single-Family Home Priced Over $2 million Seacrest, a Laing...

Urban Meets Suburban.(SUPPLEMENT: Custom Builder)(Editorial)(Brief article)
April 1, 2008... By Felicia Oliver, Senior Editor A narrow-lot floor plan mimics flexibility associated with large-lot homes. GOLD WINNER: Icon at Playa Vista, Plan 3, Playa Vista, Calif. Best Single-Family Home Priced from $1 million to $2 Million...

The Lap of Luxury.(SUPPLEMENT: Custom Builder)(Luxury kitchen and Bathroom)
April 1, 2008... By Mary Jo Peterson, Mary Jo Peterson Inc. In a world where economies of cost, space and time are otherwise popular, our lifestyles continue to reinforce our devotion to the kitchen. We've gone from the traditional work triangle to the...

The Winner's Circle.(SUPPLEMENT: Custom Builder)(Best of the Guide 2005: Kitchen & Bath Hardware Stores)(Survey)
April 1, 2008... By Nick Bajzek, Products Editor Our inaugural Best in Class Kitchen & Bath Survey guides custom builders in finding the top brands to use in kitchens and bathrooms. The 2008 Best in Class Kitchen & Bath Survey rated the highest brand...

No-Cuss Customer Service, Part 1.(SUPPLEMENT: Custom Builder)
April 1, 2008... By Tom Stephani, Custom Construction Concepts Customer service is often confused with warranty service, but it is much more. Warranty service takes care of construction defects or workmanship issues and is an important part of a...

Mass Custom King.(SUPPLEMENT: GIANTS)(Wilshire Homes)(Company overview)
April 10, 2008... By Bill Lurz, Senior Editor He's not the Burger King, but he'll let you have it your way. Squeezed by competing with the public giants, this Austin, Texas-based production builder developed a new approach to mass-customization that now...

Housing Demographics and You.(SUPPLEMENT: GIANTS)
April 10, 2008... By Peter Fabris, Contributing Editor Big changes are underway, and each shift affects housing's giants. In the first of this three-part series, we explore the critical segments you should watch. The U.S. is a land of diverse geography,...

The Cyclical Nature of Permit Activity.(SUPPLEMENT: GIANTS)
April 10, 2008... By John Burns and Chris Porter, Real Estate Consulting Permits are down, but the drop isn't unprecedented. Here's what the latest data shows. Single-family permit activity has declined so rapidly in this cycle that, nationwide,...

News & Moves.(SUPPLEMENT: GIANTS)
April 10, 2008... By Jennifer Powell, Staff Writer Weyerhaeuser Co. has named Larry Burrows , 55, as the new president and CEO of Weyerhaeuser Real Estate Co. He succeeds Daniel S. Fulton , who assumed the title of president of Weyerhaeuser Co. in December....

Is Selling Financing A Lost Art?(SUPPLEMENT: GIANTS)(Editorial)(Brief article)
April 10, 2008... By Bill Lurz, Senior Editor, Business That's what Bill wondered on his blog, Ear to the Ground. Tom Richey called me the other day to vent about the inability of most new-home sales agents to master the art of selling special...

Who will be your buyers?(SUPPLEMENT: GIANTS)
April 24, 2008... By Peter Fabris, Contributing Editor We know demographics are changing, and home builders should know the characteristics of those groups to plan ahead. In part one of this series, we examined several key demographic groups that will...

News & Moves.(SUPPLEMENT: GIANTS)(Ben Boyce has promoted)(Steven Greyshock has appointed)(Scott Cobett has also appointed)
April 24, 2008... By Jennifer Powell, Staff Writer Laguna Hills, Calif.-based Laer Pearce & Associates announced the recent promotions of Ben Boyce to vice president and Steven Greyshock to senior associate, along with the addition of a new associate, Scott...

It's An Image Problem.(SUPPLEMENT: GIANTS)
April 24, 2008... By Rick Heaston, R.A. Heaston and Co. Salespeople have more to overcome than a bad market. Jack Carew , author of "You'll Never Get No For An Answer," tells an interesting story about sales and selling. Not a long time ago, Jack...

How's It Lookin'?(SUPPLEMENT: GIANTS)
April 24, 2008... By Sara Zailskas, Assistant Managing Editor You've received six editions of a digital Housing Giants ,and I'd love to know what you think. Talk about brand new territory. This is our sixth all digital Housing Giants magazine, and we're...

Build Your Community Partnerships.(SUPPLEMENT: GIANTS)
April 24, 2008... By Richie L. Butler, CityView Good plans for working families go beyond just getting along. This New Orleans initiative takes it a step farther. To date, CityView has invested more than $700 million to build quality, market-rate homes...