Housing Not Falling Apart, State Governors Told

With concerns over the health of the nation’s housing industry increasing in response to slower sales and rising unsold inventories, NAHB President David Pressly and other association representatives have been stepping up their efforts to put the current downturn into perspective and respond to unsubstantiated, speculative reports in the new media “that the world is falling apart.”

The current slowdown in the pace of sales and construction “is pretty much what we were expecting” following the unsustainable levels of recent boom years and will still leave activity close to record levels, Pressly told a “Housing and Homeownership” conference of the Democratic Governors Association (DGA) in Aspen, Colo. on Aug. 26. ...

Big Builders Play It Safe on Innovative Technology

In an industry that is slow to give up the traditional way of doing things, larger, national production builders may not be entirely sold on innovative building technologies and materials, but they are more likely to invest in them than their smaller counterparts and they do see many possible benefits from using them over the next couple of decades, according to a recent report from the Partnership for Advancing Technology in Housing (PATH).

The report, “Characteristics of Innovative Production Builders,” was based on surveys of NAHB members affiliated with the 400 largest builders in the U.S., all of which build 200 or more single-family homes per year from stock plans rather than custom designs. The study was prepared by the Center for Housing Research at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Va. ...

Play Builders' Free Online Pro Football Game for Prizes, Fun

Don't miss another weekend of games — and your chance to win prizes from HGTVPro. Sign up and play in the Builders Football League (BFL) on HTGVpro.com — the free, online pro football "pick 'em" contest with a special league for NAHB members.

Playing is free, fun and easy ― and participants have a chance to win weekly prizes or the grand prize — a Panasonic 61-inch high definition TV — at the end of the season. ...

Share Nation's Building News With Your Staff. It's Free.

Make your business click. Subscribe your employees and trade partners to Nation's Building News — the free, online e-newspaper of NAHB.

Each issue is filled with valuable news and information on every aspect of the home building industry — business and builders tips; the latest materials prices and mortgage interest rates; new technologies; cutting-edge design; state and federal regulations and how they affect the industy; and more. Information your entire company needs to stay ahead of your competitors. ...

Nation's Building News Will Not Be Published Sept. 18

Nation's Building News will not be published on Sept. 18. Publication of NAHB's official online e-newspaper will return to its regular weekly schedule with the Sept. 25 issue.