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Mastering the Largest Bedrooms of All
Even in the midst of a shaky economy, American homes are spreading bigger. These mega-dwellings, naturally, are made up of super-sized rooms. The foyers are becoming more expansive, for example, and adult bedrooms and bathrooms not only are claiming more space but incorporating several different rooms into "master suites." Home designers and residential builders say these areas are like a home within the home, cozy and intimate spaces where owners can lounge in privacy. Furnishing the more public parts of the residence — from the great rooms and huge kitchens to the formal living rooms and dining areas — is taking a back burner to outfitting the oversized bedrooms, say designers, who point to the growing popularity of such items as tufted chairs and upholstered ottomans, mirrored vanity tables and king-sized beds. Meanwhile, home owners are equipping their personal sanctuaries with such amenities as plasma televisions, fireplaces and refrigerators. (www.usatoday.com)
USA Today (10/31/03) P. 4D; Barker, Olivia
Home Builders Smash Views
Led by Pulte, the nation's top residential builders easily outperformed profit estimates. Representatives at the firms — which also included Centex, Ryland and Meritage — also delivered optimistic forecasts as the housing markets continues to flourish even under the pressure of higher interest rates. (www.investors.com)
Investor's Business Daily (10/27/03) P. A2
Homeownership Builds to Record
The Commerce Department reports that the U.S. homeownership rate reached an all-time high of 68.4% during the third quarter, bumping up from the previous record of 68.3% reached at the close of 2002. A week ago during the mortgage industry's annual convention, lenders wondered whether homeownership levels could climb any higher now that interest rates have started to rise again. Some mortgage lenders believe the industry could stay strong by targeting African Americans and Hispanics — only 48% and 46.1% of which, respectively, already own their homes. However, experts such as Mortgage Bankers Association Chief Economist Doug Duncan warned lenders not to view low-income and minority families as a "silver bullet" for offsetting losses in mortgage refinancing business and stressed the danger of lowering credit standards in an environment in which delinquencies are on the rise. (www.wsj.com)
Wall Street Journal (10/29/03) P. A2; Barta, Patrick`
The Color of Money
Though home buyers will spend anywhere from 5%-8% more to incorporate the most sophisticated energy-saving features, they can shave hundreds of dollars off their utility bills. Florida-based builder Larry Kemick, for instance, includes a 12-SEER air conditioner, programmable thermostat, cellulose ceiling insulation, rigid board wall insulation, tinted windows and compact fluorescent lighting in his $200,000s-priced homes. Owners who want to make their dwellings more energy-efficient can upgrade to a 14-SEER air conditioner, concrete walls, sealed-attic insulation, passive solar water heaters and double-pane windows. An increasing number of builders are boosting their energy-saving options. There are also a number of things home owners can do on their own to improve energy efficiency on their own, such as keeping the thermostat at 78 degrees in the summer and 68 degrees in the winter; replacing the air-conditioner filter monthly; using the ceiling fan only when they are in the room; running the pool pump for only six hours per day in the summer and four hours in the winter; frequently cleaning their dryer's lint filter; using the dryer's auto sensor function; and refraining from pre-rinsing dishes that go in the dishwasher. (www.herald-trib.com)
Sarasota Herald-Tribune (10/26/03) P. I1; Stockbridge-Pratt, Dorothy
Center Gets Grant for Healthy Housing
A $300,000 grant has been presented from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to aid in the establishment of a national healthy homes training program. The National Center for Healthy Housing, based in Columbia, MD, will use the funds to educate real estate professionals and health officers on such concerns as juvenile lead poisoning and indoor air quality. Experts in housing, environmental public health and building science will work together to develop the coursework — which initially will be carried at Eastern Kentucky University, the Johns Hopkins University, the University of Cincinnati, the University of Washington and the University of Wisconsin but ultimately will be offered at higher-education institutions countrywide.
(www.sunspot.net)
Baltimore Sun (10/26/03) P. 3L
Outdoor Fireplaces Warm Up Cold Days
Outdoor fireplaces and fire pits are becoming more common as home owners look to spend more time outdoors and entertain family and friends. These fireplaces — which range in price from $5,000 to $20,000 depending on the size and details — can be used as a means of warming up the patio area or as part of an extensive outdoor area that may include other features, such as a hot tub or a kitchen. In fact, many home owners are shelling out as much as $40,000 on outdoor kitchens complete with fireplaces, grills, wine coolers, sinks and refrigerators. Outdoor fireplaces typically are fashioned of brick, stone or stucco and are fueled with wood, propane or gas. Fire pits, meanwhile, range in price from $500 for a basic concrete pit to $2,500 for a detailed pit with a seating area and are made of stone, brick or concrete. (www.chicagotribune.com)
Chicago Tribune (10/25/03) P. 3; Beatty, Allison E.
Thievery Adds to the Cost of Building a Home in Maryland
Construction theft is fairly common in Maryland and across the country; and builders say stolen items range from lumber, appliances, air conditioner and furnaces to generators and compressors. Losses related to theft and vandalism total about $1 billion annually, according to the National Insurance Crime Bureau and the Associated General Contractors of America; but the actual figure is unknown because sky-high liability insurance rates have kept most builders from reporting the crimes to their insurers. "If it's not a $100,000 loss — which is basically an entire house — then forget the insurance...Every theft is a direct hit to the bottom line and a potentially hidden charge to the customer," explains Mark Somerville of Ryland Homes' Baltimore division. In fact, a report by NAHB reveals that theft and vandalism boost new-home prices by 1%-2%. However, builders are doing a number of things to curb theft and minimize losses. Many are hiring security guards to monitor the sites at night; securing materials and tools; removing appliance doors; having lumber delivered several times during the construction process; and purchasing security devices for certain equipment. (www.sunspot.net)
Baltimore Sun (10/26/03) P. 1L; Henslee, Anne Lauren
KB Home Becomes First Big Builder to Adopt National Housing Quality Certification Program Nationwide
KB Home will soon become the first major builder to embrace NAHB's National Housing Quality Certified Trade Contractor Program for its nationwide operations. The program requires all home building trades to be certified, which means contractors must take a 15-hour training course, develop a quality assurance program and manual, submit to random site inspections and take part in a yearly audit to achieve re-certification. After their quality assurance plans have been in force for three months, companies can apply for certification as well. According to NAHB Research Center Quality Programs Director Dean Potter, "It's a win-win-win for everyone involved: contractors find that their businesses become more efficient and profitable; builders get the benefit of better trained workers and faster build times; and customers get the best quality homes delivered on time." Potter adds that the program ultimately could minimize the risks of litigation and slash insurance premiums. KB Home will introduce the program in Southern California later this month and then expand into other markets. (www.prnewswire.com)
PRNewswire (10/28/03)
Rock-Solid Framing Technique
Carpenters across the country are learning how to build homes out of insulated concrete forms (ICFs) with the help of the United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America. ICFs are Lego-like blocks made of polystyrene, filled with concrete, and used as insulation. Though homes made with ICFs cost 1%-5% more than traditional wood-framed dwellings, they are sound-proof, more energy efficient and can better withstand hurricane-force winds. (www.pbs.org/wgbh/thisoldhouse)
This Old House (11/03) No. 73, P. 20; Power, Mark
Remodeling Market Study
According to a recent study by Harvard University's Joint Center for Housing Studies entitled "Measuring the Benefits of Home Remodeling," home owners who make more than $120,000 annually are more likely to undertake do-it-yourself (DIY) remodeling projects than those who earn less. In fact, $14.7 billion of the $69.5 billion spent by high-income households on home improvements between 2000 and 2001 can be attributed to DIY projects. Moreover, close to 54.1% of the gains in the DIY market from 1995 to 2001 are due to high-earning home owners. (www.taunton.com/finehomebuilding)
Fine Homebuilding (11/03) No. 158, P. 24; Pontolilo, Brian
Wi-Fi Is Becoming Popular at the Office
Companies are becoming more interested in wireless Internet access and are installing wireless networking technology in their offices. In fact, InfoTech says nearly half of the nation's companies had wireless networking capabilities in August, versus 17% in 2001 and 33% in 2002. Higher productivity is one of the benefits of wireless technology, and productivity gains among mobile workers have prompted companies to go wireless in the office. As more and more attention is paid to the newest 802.11g wireless standard — which surpasses the speed of current standards by fivefold — wireless networking is expected to become more popular. However, concerns about network security and the necessity of such technology has kept many companies from going wireless. (www.wsj.com)
Wall Street Journal (10/23/03) P. B4; Nasaw, Daniel
Portable Printing
Mobile workers now have the ability to print documents when they are in the field. Among the newest portable printers are Canon's i70 Color Bubble Jet and the Brother MPrint MW-100. Canon's inkjet portable printer is lightweight, compact and priced at $250. It can print 13 black-and-white pages or nine color pages per minute. Brother's MPrint MW-100 microthermal printer, meanwhile, weighs less than a pound and is also compact. The $299 machine features a 50-sheet paper cassette and can make carbon copies of documents as they print. (www.entrepreneur.com)
Entrepreneur (11/03) P. 48; Henricks, Mark
Business Unplugged
Less than 5% of the nation's workers use wi-fi technology because most companies do not have the money to go wireless in today's economy, but those that are implementing wireless networks could improve their productivity. Wi-fi makes meetings more efficient, with workers relying on laptops instead of handwritten notes. It allows them to easily exchange files and check their calendars. However, not every employee benefits from wi-fi, especially those who need a significant amount of bandwidth or desks with phone lines. Furthermore, the technology boosts yearly laptop costs by 4% per employee due to access fees, notes Gartner analyst Leslie Fiering. Still, wi-fi is expected to grow in popularity among small businesses interested in eliminating wires and facilitating relocations. (www.time.com)
Time (11/03/03) Vol. 162, No. 14, P. A23; Thottam, Jyoti
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