| Wall Street Report |
Building stocks and the major markets took a hit this month as oil prices jumped to record highs. Hurricane Katrina devastated petroleum refineries and the uncertainty of the storm's effects forced markets downward. "The president of the Philly Fed is saying the Fed has to adapt to changing circumstances," said Todd Leone, managing director of equity trading at SG Cowen Securities.
|
| Feature |
Even though she slipped quietly into the room, every person stopped what she was doing to look. Her sales people wouldn't admit it, they were awe-struck by her presence. Sales meetings were fast paced, action packed, full of information and everyone participated. After all, every one on the team was handpicked.
|
| Market Intelligence |
Featured Major Market: Houston Houston has steadily risen from a relatively small housing market in 1987 to the third largest housing market in the country. Houston has always been known for its pro-growth, pro-developer attitudes, which has lead to periods of overbuilding in the past. We were concerned about potential overbuilding in Houston until Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans.
|
| Process Improvement Report |
A house's frame is its skeleton. The frame not only provides the structure and shape of the home, but it also affects the quality of the mechanicals, interior finishes and exterior finishes. Problems resulting from a poor framing job usually don't have quick, easy solutions. With so much riding on the quality of the framing, it's critical that home builders take quality assurance into their own...
|
|
Michael Lerner, 53, still looks the part of the football player he was in his youth. For that matter, he could still pass for the burly carpenter or job superintendent of his early years in the contracting business in his hometown of Chicago. You might not pick him out of a lineup as the president and managing partner of one of the fastest growing residential building companies in America.
|
