Professional Builder (1993) articles from May 2008

Professional Builder (1993) archives from May 2008

Patron of the Arts.(property at Rose Valley, Pennsylvania)(Editorial)
May 1, 2008... By Susan Bady, Senior Editor, Design A home builder's respect for the artistic legacy of Rose Valley, Pa., resulted in Traymore, a new community that seems to please everyone. Rose Valley Borough may be located in suburban...

Getting the Survey Right.(Survey)
May 1, 2008... By Paul Cardis, CEO, Avid Ratings Co. Deciding among research vendors? Read these tips to snag a good survey that has the appropriate respondents and methodology. Without a doubt, there is an art and science to executing meaningful...

Greed Steps Back In.(Editorial)
May 1, 2008... Paul Deffenbaugh, Editorial Director New speculators on foreclosed properties are bringing the aura of greed back into the market. There are a lot of reasons the housing market went into a huge slump. As with any cataclysmic downturn,...

Sound Retreat.(Editorial)
May 1, 2008... By Bill Lurz, Senior Editor The housing slump first hinted its size in last year's Giant 400. Now it's shown its truly bestial dimensions. But even as the industry falls back, heroes show this dragon can be slain. How We Sort Housing's...

Land, Impairments Dog Public Home Builders.(Editorial)
May 1, 2008... By Bill Lurz, Senior Editor Public home builders are not the only ones drowning in a sea of red ink flowing from vast tracts of impaired land. In the mid-2000s feeding frenzy, the largest public builders got their snouts in the trough of...

Rental Apartments Poised For Liftoff.(Editorial)
May 1, 2008... By Bill Lurz, Senior Editor Peruse the tables on this page, showing the performance of the Top 10 single-family home builders compared to the Top 10 rental builders, and it's easy to see the rental market is in much better shape. Six of...

Sun Cuts Clouds Over Manufactured Housing.(Editorial)
May 1, 2008... By Bill Lurz, Senior Editor Site-built housing's downturn dragged the manufactured housing sector into the gloom the past two years, but now the sun is beginning to shine again for at least some in that industry. Part of the reason is the...

Where Are We Heading?
May 1, 2008... By Bill Lurz, Senior Editor The only consensus on what housing's next decade will look like after the boom and bust 2000s is that it will be different from the past. The trouble with trying to figure out, now, what kind of decade...

5 Markets to Watch.(Editorial)
May 1, 2008... By Susan Bady, Senior Editor, Design Not as hard hit as markets like Miami and Phoenix, these five metro areas show signs of a quicker recovery and good long-term growth. Just for a moment, shut out the gloomy picture being painted of...

Infill-Tration.(Editorial)
May 1, 2008... By Annemarie Mannion, Contributing Editor Land for infill development often starts as an eyesore. But that ugly space could be perfect for your single-family plan. Scanning for land for your infill project often means overlooking the...

Wrap It Up.
May 1, 2008... Staff A Great Barrier Staff Installed into building exterior wall assemblies, often at the same location in which building felt or paper would be, is Carlisle Coatings's Barritech VP. It provides a continuous air and water...

Building Hope One Micro Loan at a Time.(Editorial)
May 1, 2008... By Felicia Oliver, Senior Editor Builders are by and large a charitable group. Many are involved with Habitat for Humanity and Extreme Home Makeover-type projects. But Jeff Rutt of Keystone Custom Homes in Lancaster, Pa., has a program that...

Data to Treasure.(Editorial)(Brief article)
May 1, 2008... By Sara Zailskas, Assistant Managing Editor You don't have to wait for a news report that declares we've hit the bottom. Rather, tracking the right data in your area can tip you off to home building's turnaround. Chuck Shinn presented a...

Green Live/Work Project Breaks New Ground.(Editorial)
May 1, 2008... By Susan Bady, Senior Editor, Design Live/work units are a new concept in Sebastopol, Calif., about an hour's drive north of San Francisco. Florence Lofts, a green live/work project five blocks from downtown Sebastopol, has not been an...

Is This Home Page Up to Par?(Brief article)
May 1, 2008... By Jennifer Powell, Staff Writer Now is the time to beef up your sales and marketing tactics. So how's your Internet image doing? A panel of marketing experts volunteered to critique the Belcher Homes' home page at www.belcherhomes.com....

Colorado Town Catches New Urbanist Wave.(Museum of Science and Industry (Chicago, Illinois))(Editorial)
May 1, 2008... By Susan Bady, Senior Editor, Design No doubt the world-class white-water park will be a big draw, but home buyers will find other reasons to move to South Main in Buena Vista, Colo. Take, for instance, the location. Buena Vista, a small...

Think about it.
May 1, 2008... Staff 50,000 The New York Times reported on a house that is covered in more than 50,000 empty cans of beer. It's known, of course, as the Beer Can House. According to the Times, from 1968 until his death, John Milkovisch cladded his...

Roof Right!(GAF-Elk introduces Timberline Prestique High Definition shingles)(EcoStar introduces EcoVent a continuous tile-over ridge)(Monier Lifetile L.L.C. introduces Energy-Efficient Roofing (EER) System a new tile product)
May 1, 2008... Staff Hi-Def Shingles Staff The Timberline Prestique High Definition shingles have a unique, patented shadow band that results in a dramatic, higher contrast appearance on the roof. You can order the GAF-Elk granule-backed...

The 2008 Sales Follow-Up.
May 1, 2008... By John Rymer, New Home Knowledge Buyers are taking more than twice the amount of time to make a decision today versus 2005. The best sales professionals are adjusting their follow-up practices. One of the common complaints I hear from...

The Language of Your Older Buyers.(SUPPLEMENT: Custom Builder)(Baby boom generation market)(Editorial)
May 1, 2008... By Felicia Oliver, Senior Editor How to speak to boomer and beyond buyers without implying they have special needs Everyone seems interested in how baby boomers behave and how they spend their money. Boomer home buyers have motivation...

Modern Marvel.(SUPPLEMENT: Custom Builder)(home build in the Arizona desert)(Editorial)
May 1, 2008... By Susan Bady, Senior Editor, Design This home in the Arizona desert has a most unusual feature: a stream of water that aligns with the sunrise on the summer solstice. The orientation of a home on a building site is always critical for...

Products: Millwork.(SUPPLEMENT: Custom Builder)(KOMA Trim Products has introduced extruded moldings)(ResinArt has introduced DuraFlex trim molding)(CertainTeed has introduced Restoration Millwork line)(Brief article)
May 1, 2008... Staff Trimming Down Staff One of the biggest players in the PVC trim game is KOMA Trim Products , which has a new addition: the Allure Collection of extruded moldings. Each profile is produced with the same Celuka technology as...

Flowing Form and Function.(SUPPLEMENT: Custom Builder)(Editorial)
May 1, 2008... By Nick Bajzek, Products Editor Industry experts attest to the challenges in faucet design. The industry has watched kitchens evolve from purely work zones to an open area for families and guests. With that changes faucet design, and...

Products: Roofing & Siding.(SUPPLEMENT: Custom Builder)(Eldorado Stone L.L.C. has introduced RoughCut mimics limestone )(Nailite Corp. has introduced siding panel )(Monier Lifetile L.L.C.has introduced Energy-Efficient Roofing System)
May 1, 2008... Staff Rough But Cool Staff Recreated from natural sources, Eldorado Stone's RoughCut mimics limestone with embedded artifacts and other natural-looking elements. The stones range in size from 1-½ to 11 inches high and from...

No-Cuss Customer Service, Part 2.(SUPPLEMENT: Custom Builder)(Custom Construction Concepts)
May 1, 2008... By Tom Stephani, Custom Construction Concepts Creating realistic expectations before construction begins and reinforcing them during and after the build helps ensure a positive customer experience and should be part of every builder's...

Universal Lesson.(SUPPLEMENT: Custom Builder)(National Association of Home Builders of the United States)
May 1, 2008... By Ann Matesi, Senior Contributing Editor Custom builders with experience in universal design lead by example Proponents of universal design say that incorporating even the most basic elements of the concept into your projects will...

Match Your Buyers' Needs.(SUPPLEMENT: GIANTS)(customers' demands)(Editorial)
May 9, 2008... By Peter Fabris, Contributing Editor It'll take planning to meet your changing customers' demands. Here, we offer insight into what those demands will be. Demographic analysis makes clear that the next couple of decades will be...

Time to Hedge Your Bets.(SUPPLEMENT: GIANTS)(private equity firms )
May 9, 2008... Michael P. Kahn, Michael P. Kahn & Associates Wrap your head around hedge funds or private equity firms before you dive in. Most International Builders' Show buzz was about builders who had already filed, were filing or would be filing...

News & Moves.(SUPPLEMENT: GIANTS)(W. W. Grainger has appointed James T. Ryan)(CityView has hired Sean Burton)(Fiber Composites has appointed Kaylynn Poplawski)
May 9, 2008... By Jennifer Powell, Staff Writer The International Monetary Fund's forecast discusses predictions of losses to come in the mortgage market. Jaime Caruana , IMF director of monetary and capitalization, analyzes the situation and believes...

Use Process Mapping to Control Your VPOs.(SUPPLEMENT: GIANTS)(Variance purchase order)
May 9, 2008... By Tom Gebes, BuilderMT Variance purchase order costs add up. Efficient and up-to-date systems and software, however, can lessen the blow. Philip Robichaud is Calgary, Canada-based Morrison Homes ' information technology manager, and...

I Asked, You Spoke, and ...(SUPPLEMENT: GIANTS)(feedback )(Editorial)
May 9, 2008... By Sara Zailskas, Assistant Managing Editor The good news: many of you love us! The not-so-good news: some would rather sacrifice trees for print. So what now? Last issue I asked for your feedback on our new digital format, and you...

Where's the Bottom?(SUPPLEMENT: GIANTS)
May 23, 2008... By Bill Lurz, Senior Editor With their high-production organizations in tatters, the largest home builders continue to shrink - and search in vain for an end to the fall. A year ago, we pointed out that the perception of 2006 as a bad...

News & Moves.(SUPPLEMENT: GIANTS)(Alphonso Jackson has resigned from Department of Housing and Urban Development)(Dow Corning has appointed Doug Kempf)(Gary Gessel has been appointed by Milgard Windows & Doors )
May 23, 2008... By Jennifer Powell, Staff Writer HUD Secretary Steps Down Alphonso Jackson , U.S. Housing and Urban Development Secretary, resigned due to personal and family matters, he said in a press release. Jackson oversaw HUD's $37 billion...

Combat Costly Water Intrusion in Showers.(SUPPLEMENT: GIANTS)
May 23, 2008... By Michael Dickens, BuildIQ Bad shower installations can affect your business in more ways than one. Do you have a prevention strategy in place? In today's marketplace, custom tile showers are in high demand; they add beauty and value...

Are We Turning a Corner?(SUPPLEMENT: GIANTS)(housing market)(Editorial)
May 23, 2008... By Bill Lurz, Senior Editor, Business Some markets have bottomed out, and analysts are taking note. In our first Feb. 7 issue, I speculated a series of factors would contribute to ending the current housing slump "in the blink of an...

Letters to the Editor.(SUPPLEMENT: GIANTS)
May 23, 2008... Staff Heaston's Idea of the 'Image Problem' is Off I read with great concern and distress the article "It's An Image Problem" by Rick Heaston in the April 24 issue. First and foremost, the most critical "image" problem far too...