- Join the Conversation
- Front Page
- Poll Finds Big Disconnect Between Washington Policymakers and Voters on Value of Housing
- Floor Plans: Martha’s Vineyard Gingerbread Charm Meets National Green Building Gold
- GSE and FHA Loan Limit Declines Discouraging Prospect for Recovering Housing Market
- Builders Express Strong Support for HOME Program
- Layouts for Living
- Coast to Coast
- Politics and Government
- Economics and Finance
- Tips and Techniques
- Safety
- Home Technology
- Multifamily Housing
- Small Builders and Remodelers
- 20 Clubs
- Sales and Marketing
- Building Systems
- Professional Women in Building
- Upcoming Webinars
- June 15: Free Webinar to Examine Green Home Technology Trends That Entice Buyers
- June 29: Learn How to Use Social Media to Engage With Targeted Audiences
- July 13: Webinar to Look at What’s Hot in New-Home Construction
- July 20: Free Webinar to Guide Builders Through New Financing Environment
- Aug. 31: Webinar to Offer Tips on Fast-Tracking Internet Marketing Strategies
- Sept. 14: Webinar to Teach Builders How to Use YouTube and Photo Sites to Market, Sell Homes
- Sept. 28: Webinar Looks at What’s Cooking in Kitchen Design
- Education
- Green Building
- Environment
- Design
- Workforce Development
- Global Opportunities
- Building Products
- National Housing Endowment
- Association News
- NAHB Career Center
The Official Online Newspaper of NAHB
Nearly three out of four American voters believe that it is reasonable and appropriate for the federal government to provide tax incentives to promote homeownership, a sentiment that cuts across partisan and regional lines across the country, according to a recent poll conducted on behalf of NAHB.
Further, an overwhelming majority of respondents oppose eliminating the mortgage interest deduction and would be less likely to support a candidate for Congress who wants to do away with this vital tax incentive.
“Despite the current housing downturn, Americans still see homeownership as a core value and a key building block of being in the middle class and creating strong jobs in their communities,” said Celinda Lake, president of Lake Research Partners, which conducted the survey along with Public Opinion Strategies. ... Read More
| Framing Lumber Composite | $ 262 |  |
$ 1 |
| OSB Composite | $ 204 | |
$ 6 |
| Southern Pine Plywood Composite | $ 397 |  |
$ 3 |
| With permission from: www.randomlengths.com |
The home’s architecture was inspired by the summer cottages on Cape Cod and Martha’s Vineyard, but the Beechwood With Tower summerhouse cottage at The Pinehills master-planned community in Plymouth, Mass., is a year-round residence that has achieved the Gold level of the National Green Building Standard.
Combining old world charm and craftsmanship with state-of-the-art amenities and energy efficiency, perhaps the home’s greatest accomplishment is in how it combines new and old ideas — from solar panels and the latest appliances to wrap-around porches and rain barrels — to create a smarter and more sustainable living environment. ...... Read More
A drop in some mortgage loan limits for the government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and the Federal Housing Administration scheduled to occur on Oct. 1 will reduce housing demand and place downward pressure on home prices in major housing markets of the country, according to a new study from NAHB's Economics and Housing Policy Group.
The homes that will become ineligible to be purchased and securitized by the GSEs or to be purchased with FHA-insured financing as a result of the lower limits, if they are being sold, “would likely require financing with higher mortgage interest rates and other less favorable loan terms, such as higher required downpayments and more stringent credit history thresholds,” according to the authors of the report, NAHB economists Robert Dietz and Natalia Siniavskaia. ...... Read More
Reports in the Washington Post on May 15-16 depicted a “million-dollar wasteland” of failed or uncompleted housing projects under the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s HOME Investment Partnership Program affordable housing initiative, according to NAHB leaders and builders who have participated in the program.
“The vast majority of the multifamily and single-family homes built under this program are great projects that have enabled working families to rent or own a home at a price they can afford. This achievement is entirely neglected in your coverage,” NAHB Chairman Bob Nielsen said in a letter to the newspaper’s editor.
HOME is the largest federal block grant for affordable housing available to state and local governments, disbursing about $2 billion a year.
By requiring that participating jurisdictions match 25 cents for every grant dollar, HOME is able to prime the pump for other community resources to house low-income families — stretching scarce funding money. ...... Read More
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| * Seasonally Adjusted Annual Rate | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||