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New Drywall Resists Mold, Mildew
This month marks the release of USG Corp.'s Humitek, a drywall with a biocide to safeguard against mold and mildew. Though its initial price is likely to be double that of conventional drywall, Humitek is similarly installed and finished. Despite the higher price tag, the product should sell quickly in areas plagued by high humidity. DensArmor Plus, another mold- and mildew-resistant product manufactured by Georgia-Pacific, keeps moisture away with inorganic glass fibers. As these and similar products are introduced to the market, prices should come down. While products like Humitek and DensArmor Plus are useful in eliminating mold and mildew, USG officials say more needs to be done to protect materials and equipment from the elements during the building process. (www.chicagotribune.com)
Chicago Tribune (06/20/03) P. 7; Dymski, Gary
Builders Offering Money to Schools
In Durham County, NC, Larry Thomas and R.L. Hovarth Associates Inc. are among the home builders offering to make monetary donations to the local school system as a way to help mitigate school overcrowding resulting from their projects. County attorney Chuck Kitchen sees no problem with such agreements, provided that commissioners are not illegally approving rezoning requests based on money. The county has proposed a bill that would require builders to pay $2,500 in impact fees for each single-family home and $1,500 for multifamily buildings, but challenges from local builders and real estate agents have kept the legislation from making it out of the General Assembly. According to the Homebuilders Association of Durham and Orange Counties, the impact fees would boost home prices by as much as $3,000 and unfairly saddle new-home buyers with the financial burdens of development. Though officials commend developers for trying to resolve the overcrowding issue, they believe a standard fee that encompasses all projects is necessary. The county scrapped plans to implement impact fees two years ago because it would have cost $750,000 annually to reimburse developers of low-cost units, but the current plan would create a separate policy for affordable housing. (www.herald-sun.com)
Durham Herald Sun Online-- (06/19/03) Assis, Claudia
Future Home Builders Look to 'Bank Land' Before It's Gone
According to "Your New Home" co-author Alan Fields, a growing number of people are purchasing land years before they plan to build their dream or retirement homes out of fears that the booming housing market and dwindling land supply will leave them with few options in the future. However, there are more costs and considerations involved in such a land purchase; and prospective buyers should study them carefully before proceeding. First, Fields recommends viewing the local government's long-range land-use plan to avoid parcels zoned for business or commercial use or those in areas that could eventually see major improvements or restrictions. Land buyers also should be aware of building restrictions if the plot is a subdivision, whereas vacant lots or undeveloped areas afford more freedom. Conducting geographical and environmental tests on soil and groundwater are important, meanwhile, especially if the land was once used for farming or industrial purposes and could require costly cleanups. In addition, land buyers could be forced to shell out a significant amount of money on infrastructure if the area has yet to be developed. Buyers will also pay higher mortgage interest rates and fees because of the added risks assumed by the lender; and while standard home owner's insurance policies offer coverage for vacant lots, additional insurance is needed if the property is not considered vacant or the buyer is a renter. (www.wsj.com)
Wall Street Journal Online (06/19/03) Cullen, Terri
Single Women Buy Into Homeownership
The National Association of Realtors® estimates that single women accounted for 18% of first-time home buyers last year, up from 15% in 2001. In contrast, only 7% of buyers in 2001 and 9% in 2002 were single men. NAR industry-trend specialist Walter Molony says an increasing number of single women are making home purchases because they view homeownership as a safe investment and have better access to mortgages than in the past. In fact, low interest rates, the emergence of low downpayment loans, scaled-back underwriting standards and new rules that let them factor child support into their incomes have made the process easier for single women. Cincinnati-based Realtor® Steven Lowenstein believes single women outpace single men in terms of homeownership because they undertake more extensive home searches. NAR research also reveals that single women make up nearly half of all condominium owners — which Lowenstein attributes to the presence of other singles, exercise rooms and other amenities in condo and townhome developments. (www.washtimes.com)
Washington Times (06/20/03) P. F12; McLinden, Steve
Affordable Housing Bill Set Aside
The New York Senate recently tabled an affordable housing bill sponsored by Assemblyman Thomas DiNapoli (D-Great Neck) and Sen. Michael Balboni (R-East Williston) until more towns and villages make their voices heard. Under the proposed legislation, 10% of the units in subdivisions with five or more units would be reserved for lower-income families; and developers would have to contribute to an affordable housing fund if they cannot offer low-cost housing on a particular site. Local housing activists oppose the decision to stall the bill as more and more young workers leave the area in search of affordable shelter. In fact, Long Island Association President Matthew Crosson notes that the number of 25- to 34-year-olds living on the Island fell by 18,000 in 2001. Moreover, Long Island Builders Institute Executive Vice President Bob Weiboldt says more than 100,000 low-cost units must be built over the next decade to meet demand. His organization backs the proposed measure, which supporters hope will win Senate approval when the legislature convenes this fall. (www.newsday.com)
New York Newsday (06/20/03) P. A47; Herzlich, Jamie
'Urban Villages' Lifting Off
Mixed-use developments, also described as self-contained villages or walkable communities, are cropping up in small Utah towns as a means to curb urban sprawl. Though some believe urban villages are designed for dense cities, Maryland town planner Mike Watkins is convinced that they are a viable option in any locale. Parkway Crossing — which presently is being built near Utah Valley State College in Orem — will offer its 6,000 student renters a church meeting place, a call center, a grocery store, eateries and retail stores. Aside from attending classes, the students could meet their daily needs without ever leaving the village. Still, it is unclear whether the market can support the added retail and office space. According to Ralph Epstein, manager of the successful mixed-use Riverwoods complex, "This is a relatively small market, with a terrific amount of retail space, and there are fewer and fewer tenants who want to come here." (www.desnews.com)
Deseret News Online (06/18/03) Hyde, Jesse
Building Limits OK'd in Harford
Officials in Harford County, MD, a Baltimore suburb, have passed a six-month suspension on residential subdivisions with more than five units. The measure aims to buy a county task force more time to propose ways to ease school overcrowding. The county council is still waiting to see if County Executive James M. Harkins will approve the moratorium. Harford is not the only Maryland county worried about crowded schools, traffic and rapid development. In fact, Carroll County issued a one-year freeze on subdivisions governed by its adequate public facilities law earlier this month; and Howard County has delayed the construction of more than 1,000 homes. Planners in Anne Arundel County, meanwhile, are considering new rules that would force developers to improve intersections. Harford County Councilman Dion F. Guthrie introduced a bill in March to prohibit residential development if enrollment at the affected school is above 100% of its capacity, down from the current 120% limit; but it is being stalled for six months as a task force comprised of city council members, home builders and others examine the existing adequate public facilities laws. Local home builders oppose the moratorium because they say it would hurt the local economy as well as businesses and subcontractors. (www.sunspot.net)
Baltimore Sun Online (06/18/03)
Beatle-Mania Infests Desert Homes
Developers are using a number of marketing strategies and sparing no expense to attract baby boomers, whose numbers have hit 39.5 million nationwide. Shea Homes, for instance, has built "The Beatles House," a model home at its Trilogy at La Quinta community in California, complete with electric guitars, framed albums, Beatles watercolors and "Let It Be" yard art. Other companies, meanwhile, are spending millions on golf courses and other amenities as well as posting floor plans on the Internet. With many retirees looking to stay close to home, a growing number of developers are focusing on Minneapolis, Detroit, Chicago and other non-traditional retirement locales. In California, development is moving farther into the desert, where land could be quickly depleted if acquisitions remain at their current pace. Del Webb, for instance, is making monthly land purchases to the tune of $100 million. (www.inman.com)
Inman News Features Online (06/18/03) Kelly, Tom
Builder's Opportunism Hits Nail on the Head
Lennar Corp., one of the nation's leading home builders, saw new-home deliveries skyrocket 25% to 7,385 in the fiscal second quarter; while its average sales price rose 8% to $257,000. In addition to low interest rates, the company's success can be attributed to rapid acquisitions; a marketing program that gives buyers a choice between custom or standard options; new mortgage and insurance offerings; and its expansion into San Diego, Miami and other urban areas. In fact, the company's decision to purchase discounted land in San Francisco after the tech bust has proven profitable; and it has moved into California's rural Central Valley as well. Citigroup Smith Barney analyst Stephen Kim suspects that Lennar's plentiful land supply will keep the company afloat when real estate activity slows. The builder owns a two-year supply of land and has another three years of business in land options, which it can easily let go if the market takes a turn for the worse. (www.investors.com)
Investor's Business Daily (06/18/03) P. A8; Alva, Marilyn
Built Solid; Housing Market Still Sizzling After a Record 2002
Nicolas Retsinas, director of the Joint Center for Housing Studies at Harvard University, says the housing market "has almost been the superhero of the economy" because of the strength it has displayed during the economic downturn. The center released a new report naming 2002 as the strongest year ever for the housing market as new highs for the homeownership rate, home sales, residential investment, aggregate equity and total mortgage debt were all reached last year. Doug Duncan, senior vice president and chief economist of the Mortgage Bankers Association of America, adds that refinancing — which allows home owners to lower monthly payments, shorten loan terms or take cash out — has been the option of choice for many people who are not ready to relocate. Although 2002 was also a record-breaking year for foreclosures, Duncan says the figures can be misleading because New Jersey, New York and other states with long foreclosure processes pushed the average higher. (www.bergen.com)
Bergen Record (06/17/03) P. L8; Pries, Allison
Now Rooms Come in Super Size
As part of today's "McMansion" trend among home builders, residences often are built with multi-story entrance halls or with no interior walls to break up the foyer, living room and dining room. These and other expansive spaces can be difficult to decorate because traditional furnishings are too small and can get lost in the vast amount of open space. Interior decorators say the key is to blend scale, color and light. Rooms can be brought to a more manageable size with the use of bright colors and low-hanging ceiling fixtures; and large-scale antique furniture, tapestries and landscape paintings more easily fill the space. Huge chandeliers can be used to center ballroom-sized areas, and some designers use a number of lighting sources to illuminate various parts of the room. Designers also divide larger rooms into several spaces and concentrate on each section separately. Design pros say well-proportioned rooms need few furnishings, such as a single table with a flower arrangement, to create the desired effect. However, poor architecture can make the job more difficult — especially when builders do not consider how home owners will clean high windows or replace bulbs in lighting fixtures. (www.washtimes.com)
Washington Times (06/18/03) P. B1; Geracimos, Ann
Habitat for Humanity Builds Experimental Home
Habitat for Humanity has built a low-cost, experimental home in Lenoir City, TN, with 48 solar panels and a multi-functional water heater. The home — likely the most energy-efficient one ever constructed by the organization — features walls, floors and a roof made from prefabricated insulated panels; energy-efficient appliances, windows and doors; air ducts; and a water heater that controls humidity levels in the crawl space and pumps cool air behind the refrigerator. As a result, the home owners paid under $43 per month on electricity during the winter and expect more cost savings from the solar panels. Given that low-income families set aside up to 14% of their incomes for heating and cooling costs, David Garman of the Department of Energy believes the home works well for Habitat. Though green building techniques tend to dramatically boost home prices, the residence boasts a price tag of just $124,000, including the solar panels. NAHB reports that 13,000-plus homes meeting its green-building standards were built in 2002 alone, compared to less than 19,000 total built between 1990 and 2001. (www.sunspot.net)
Baltimore Sun (06/15/03) P. 11L; Mansfield, Duncan
Best Firewalls for Small Businesses
Businesses of all sizes need firewalls to ensure Internet security, but small operations face a challenge in trying to choose options in a market that offers a range of products. Gartner's Richard Stiennon recommends appliances, saying that small businesses would be best advised to choose firewall applications instead of software firewalls, and that embedded firewalls — which do not always block IP-level attacks — are appropriate only for groups that need to shield more than one host. Additionally, Chris Christiansen of IDC argues that small companies should avoid implementing a firewall on mail servers or other types of servers hosting general-purpose applications, and he stresses the importance of proper customer service from vendors or VARs, given that the majority of firewalls are misconfigured. Considering the elements of products, George Sluz of Symantec notes the primacy of virtual private networking, intrusion detection and security and stateful packet filtering, as well as VPN encryption for groups with personnel who use the system from outside the office. Businesses are choosing firewalls with a specific application focus, with some being particularly interested in spam control, and security plans are introducing wireless LANs as well. Christiansen emphasizes the importance of realizing that firewalls are a portion of network security and should not stand in place of intrusion-detection components or vulnerability assessment. Firewall vendors include WatchGuard, SonicWALL and Symantec. Borderware Technologies' MXtreme Mail Firewall offers spam protection, and WatchGuard has new Firebox SOHO 6 Wireless products that join wired and wireless security under one application. (www.newsfactor.com)
NewsFactor Network Online (06/17/03) Ryan, Vincent
An Overview of iBuilder
Succeed's iBuilder offers a suite of four products for small and mid-sized businesses to present, sell, process and track their products online. The suite features back-end, front-end and marketing tools, and Succeed President and Chief Executive Omar Sayed says it can be used to link a company's online and offline business efforts. The SiteBuilder tool includes a variety of Web site templates, as well as an image gallery, an HTML editor, Web hosting, dedicated support and other management tools. StoreBuilder has a catalog manager for inventory and sales tracking and management, more than 40 payment gateways and a tax tool that calculates sales taxes based on the business location. In addition, StoreBuilder's iBuilderLink software aligns the company's online sales information with accounting data in QuickBooks 2002 or 2003. TrafficBuilder, meanwhile, helps users market their site and monitor productivity with tools that send information to the leading search engines and an E-Mail Marketing Center. Finally, AffiliateBuilder lets retailers establish and maintain affiliate programs, putting the registration process online. (www.smallbusinesscomputing.com)
Small Business Computing Online (06/03) Rush, Laura
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