| Plans and Projects |
One of the components often overlooked in a builder's model, yet one that is vital to its success, is pre-planning a lighting design.
It's always challenging for a production builder to swap longtime house plans for new, untried ones. In Denver, competing in a market dominated by national, public builders, Village Homes of Colorado was ready to change with the times, and keep on changing.
BASF has constructed a new Better Homes, Better Planet: Near Zero Energy home in Paterson, N.J., that not only utilizes energy efficient and sustainable building practices, but also incorporates elements of universal design — features that make a home functional for its inhabitants regardless of age, physical mobility or other individual concerns.
With the coastal counties of California approaching build out, there's been increased growth in the Inland Empire. Located east of Los Angeles and known for its dairy farms, orange groves and vineyards, the Inland Empire has become the place to go for a large, move-up home. Lake Elsinore-based Castle & Cooke took a different approach.
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| Perspective |
Fifteen years after Hurricane Andrew, the temporary FEMA trailers that were put in place are still being used for housing. No matter how we strive, no matter how much we tear down and replace, no matter how we Americans fall passionately in love with the new and updated, we still end up with a built environment pockmarked by ugly temporary housing.
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| Best Practices |
All customers want a good value when purchasing a home. Yet some customers are overly fixated with negotiating a price. It is not unusual for these customers spend more time working on a special deal than in choosing the floor plan or homesite. How do you deal with a customer who wants to over-negotiate price? Is it possible keep control of the process and still keep control of the process and still keep a positive attitude with your customer?
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| Innovations |
Much news has been made in recent years of mold and other toxic substances getting into homes and making residents sick. As a result, home builders need to be keenly aware of how the construction process can affect the indoor air quality in the homes they build. If builders use good construction techniques, pay attention to detail and plan ahead, they are more likely to build homes where the air is healthy, safe and comfortable for its inhabitants.
It only takes a moment for a hurricane or tornado to peel the roof off a house. And once the roof is incapacitated, the house is a sitting duck for further damage, if not total destruction. Your best defense: fasten the roof securely to the house and include multiple layers of moisture protection.
For many home builders, wood framing is standard protocol when framing a house. It's durable, it's easily available and it has history in the residential building industry. Enter steel framing. Although used in construction for more than 50 years, steel framing is new to many sectors and regions in the residential construction market.
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| Emerging Issues |
NAHB reported a record breaking 105,000 housing professionals gathered in Orlando, Fla., for the 2006 International Builders' Show. Professional Builder and its sister publication Professional Remodeler had a cadre of reporters on the exhibit floor and at education sessions, press conferences and other special events to find out what's new and useful for builders.
In November 2005, the Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) commission approved 22 closures, recommended realignment for seven and left five bases open. What does this mean for builders? Those 22 closed bases will eventually appear on the market for sale. In a time of decreasing availability of developable real estate, bases closings can provide some of the largest expanses of undeveloped and valuable land in the country.
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| Best Practices |
Builders need to serve two masters: their customers and their financial needs. Most people in the industry agree that too much effort goes into selling options, and too many builders give them away for prices below what the market will bear. Builders can make money on upgrades, though. But it takes a good understanding of how to control the selection of options.
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| Customer Satisfaction |
Customer service is the cornerstone upon which successful businesses are built — including those in the home building industry. Exemplary service, however, isn't always enough to ward off the bane of many businesses, commonly known as customers from hell.
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| Best Practices |
The D.R. Hortons, Centexes and Toll Brothers of the builder universe have advertising budgets several times the total revenue of many small builders. So how can the little guys get heard in the marketplace when big money talks — loudly? In terms of budgets, sometimes it's not what you have, but how you use it.
These days, there are many more job opportunities in home building than quality candidates. The best ones are being courted and wooed on an almost daily basis. What keeps employees attracted and loyal to their company?
Touchpoints, commonly defined as any direct employee interface with the customer, have become the latest topic for builders who have grabbed a seat at the customer delight cafe.
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| Proactive Solutions |
Pardee Homes gets a lot of mileage marketing its environmental and energy conservation image to home buyers in Southern California and Nevada. Now, the company will get even better mileage as it replaces leased vehicles with hybrid gas-electric cars. As leases come due on company cars, Pardee will phase in 10 Ford Escape Hybrids as its couriers' leases expire.
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