Print-All Page: December 5, 2005

Given a choice of simplifying federal tax laws or retaining current housing incentives, Americans resoundingly prefer the latter, according to a new nationwide survey of 1,001 adults.

Two out of three survey participants (68%) favor retaining deductions for mortgage interest and state and local taxes over a plan to change the current tax code, according to the polling conducted by RT Strategies on Nov. 17-20.

“The survey offers a cautionary note for those in the Administration and on Capitol Hill who may be tempted to endorse the recommendations of the President’s Advisory Panel on Federal Tax Reform, which would wipe out popular tax incentives that promote homeownership and affordable housing,” said Jerry Howard, executive vice president and CEO of NAHB.

The White House and Treasury Department have yet to comment on the advisory panel’s proposal, which was presented to the Administration on Nov. 1 as part of an overall effort to overhaul the tax code.

The plan calls for replacing the mortgage interest deduction with a far more limited 15% tax credit. Also gone would be deductions for state and local taxes (including property taxes) and interest deductions for home equity loans and second homes. It would also eliminate the Low Income Housing Tax Credit, which accounts for the construction of more than 130,000 affordable rental housing units annually.

Commissioned by NAHB to determine the public reaction to revamping the current tax system, the polling firm found that an overwhelming majority of respondents support federal tax policies that foster the American dream of owning a home.

Specifically, 79% said it is reasonable for the federal government to provide tax incentives to promote homeownership, and 82% believe the government should use the tax code to encourage affordable housing.

“Registered Democratic and Republican voters in all age groups view efforts to tamper with home interest deductibility as a major threat to their retirement security and their ability to pay for their children's college educations," said Lance Tarrance, who, along with Thomas Riehle, is a partner of RT Strategies. "For many older home owners, the equity built up in a home also provides an important hedge against unanticipated health care costs."

Moreover, 71% of survey respondents oppose the idea of changing the tax code to encourage people to invest more in stocks and bonds and less in the homes that they own. “And that is exactly what the advisory tax panel’s plan would do,” said Howard.

“As we learned in watching the recent California initiative battles, complex proposals tend to lose support, not gain support, as they get more public attention,” said Riehle. “This proposal starts with no real core of supporters.”

Click here for NAHB resources on the tax reform issue, including a link to an ad outlining NAHB's position on tax reform in the National Journal, Congressional Quarterly Weekly, Roll Call and Washington Post.

For more information, e-mail Michael Strauss at NAHB, or call him at 800-368-5242 x8252.

EPA Cracking Down on Storm Water Permit Enforcement

The EPA has made the permits a national enforcement priority and is throwing more resources at compliance. When Wal-Mart paid $3.2 million in penalties and was required to institute extensive storm water management education programs within its development division, it made the headlines. Now, home builders are being slapped with big fines as well.

A developer in Pelham, N.H. paid $137,500 for storm water management infractions. An El Paso, Texas home builder paid $5,500; home builders in Iowa have paid a total of $295,000. And in West Fargo, N.D. 17 home builders in one subdivision are having to comply with EPA requests for information on every lot on which they’ve built in the last five years, including the names of all their subcontractors.

“If they’ve even been to West Fargo, then no one is safe,” Marolyn Parson, NAHB’s director of environmental policy, told a group of 200 builders, developers and engineers at a Nov. 30 seminar sponsored by the Northern Virginia Building Industry Association.

NAHB representatives have been crisscrossing the country at the invitation of HBAs hoping to bring their members into compliance with the EPA regulations, which became more stringent in 2003. Now, a developer must obtain a storm water permit if one or more acres are disturbed, but home builders must get a permit for a lot of any size that is part of a subdivision of one or more acres.

Estimates vary, but the EPA believes that perhaps only 30% of builders are in compliance with the law, Parson said. Getting builders to comply is complicated for a number of reasons. First, many home builders are unaware of the requirement or believe it only applies to developers. But when the lots are sold to the builder, the builder takes on the responsibility of obtaining the permit and of keeping the pollution prevention plan up to date.

Second, information about the fines being levied and the kinds of infractions on which the EPA tends to focus has been limited and anecdotal. NAHB has been unsuccessful in attempts to obtain the facts and figures from the agency despite filing a request under the Freedom of Information Act. Those details would enable the association to do a better job of educating its members on this issue, Parson said.

Third, it can be time-consuming to keep the forms up to date, have the inspections completed and keep other requirements current. “I think it requires a corporate mentality that says you will do things the right way,” said J. Anderson Frix, a Northern Virginia engineer. “You have to keep construction logs anyway, so I don’t see it as that onerous. You just incorporate it into the process.”

In Virginia, EPA storm water permits are now administered through the Commonwealth’s Department of Conservation and Recreation, which sent representatives to the builders association seminar to walk members through the process.

General storm water permit applications must be accompanied by certification that the applicant has completed a Storm Water Pollution Prevention Plan. Virginia inspectors — as well as EPA representatives — can visit job sites to determine if the home builder or developer is following the plan as described, keeping silt fences well maintained, conducting periodic inspections of the site and recording the results, and making sure that subcontractors are following pollution prevention practices.

The EPA is targeting larger home builders, as well as big commercial developers, in its enforcement efforts. But smaller home builders are not exempt from scrutiny. The federal agency and the states that administer compliance enforcement programs are seeking to educate the industry, but if they have to issue penalties to ensure compliance, they will.

“I would rather have a close, cooperative working relationship, but I’m only going to work with you for so long,” Eric R. Capps, erosion and sediment control and construction permitting manager for Virginia’s Department of Conservation and Recreation, warned the Northern Virginia builders. The department will provide any instructions needed to complete a pollution prevention plan and to go through the permitting process, he said, but if a home builder doesn’t comply, “I’m going to turn it over to enforcement and be done with you.”

NAHB has compiled extensive guidelines and information on storm water management at www.nahb.org/stormwater. The popular NAHB publication, “Storm Water Permitting: A Guide for Builders and Developers,” including a CD of regulations for all 50 states, will be available starting Dec. 12 from BuilderBooks.com and at the International Builders’ Show in Orlando, Fla., in January.

Click here to see EPA guidelines on completing a Storm Water Pollution Prevention Plan.

For more information, e-mail Marolyn Parson or Kimberly Porter at NAHB, or call them at 800-368-5242 x8157 and x8662, respectively. Porter also is seeking comments from NAHB members who have dealt with the EPA or their own state authorities on storm water compliance issues.

For a related story in this issue on how to ensure compliance and avoid fines by coming up with a good Storm Water Pollution Protection Plan, click here.

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Condo Crash Coming

In a few markets where developers have been incautiously building more condominium units than can possibly be absorbed at once — including Miami, Palm Beach and Fort Lauderdale in South Florida with 25,888 apartments under construction and Chicago, where 15,013 units have been started, according to Torto Wheaton Research/Dodge Pipeline — industry watchers are expecting prices to collapse. In those markets, where experts believe that 70% of the new condominiums are being purchased by investors, prices could drop by 30% between 2006 and 2007. By contrast, about 9,600 condominiums are being built or converted in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area, and experts think that they can be absorbed, particularly because they cost less than single-family homes and are an attractive alternative to prospective buyers who can’t afford a house. Some 7,000 condominiums were sold in Washington during the first half of this year. Since 2001, condominium sales have increased almost 50%, according to Condo-Mania!, a report by Wachovia Securities. But the volume is still relatively small, with $13.2 billion in sales during the first quarter of this year, compared to $300 billion in single-family sales during that time. (www.housingfinance.com)
Apartment Finance Today (Nov.-Dec. 2005); Bendix Anderson

Help Wanted; So Is Housing

Making it difficult to resurrect the economy of New Orleans, three months after it was ravaged by Hurricane Katrina nearly 75% of the city’s housing stock is uninhabitable, and rents for the remaining residences are skyrocketing as thousands of people return for recovery work. In the Mid-City neighborhood, two-bedroom duplexes once renting for $900 a month can now fetch as much as $2,000. Throughout the city, ad hoc neighborhoods hosting residents and FEMA workers have sprouted up in unlikely places, including government-issued trailers in vast hardware store parking lots. Others have created homesteads in city parks, living in tents. The city has announced that it will start charging the campers. When the city does eventually recover, it is expected to be smaller, down to half its pre-storm population of 450,000. About 150,000 are within the city limits during the day, but each evening about half of them leave. (www.rismedia.com)
RisMedia (11/29/05); Beth Bresnahan

Saying Yes to Housing

Aimed at making the state economically more competitive by doing something about the high cost of housing, legislation signed into law by Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney, 40S, goes to the heart of the reason communities most often cite for turning down new residential construction. The law provides state funding to make up the difference between what communities collect in property taxes from new homes and the cost of educating the children who move into them. That tab is projected to total about $35 million annually. The law complements legislation passed a year ago that pays communities to approve housing near transit stops and town centers. The state’s zoning law also allows developers to circumvent communities where less than 10% of the housing stock is not affordable. No state in the country has seen greater home price appreciation in the past 25 years. “Massachusetts right now is committing slow suicide by its lack of receptivity to young families and children,” says Paul Grogan, president of the Boston Foundation. (www.boston.com)
Boston Globe (11/23/05); Steve Bailey

Moving In and Moving On; Washington Area Is a ‘Funnel’

Migration into the Washington, D.C. market is being driven by the region’s very strong job market, which is the best in the country, according to Mark Zandi, founder and chief economist of Economy.com. But even though the movers tend to be “from other, very high-house-priced areas such as California and New York,” a large number of them have been exiting to areas around Baltimore and Hagerstown in Maryland and Richmond and Winchester in Virginia because the area’s housing prices have jumped so much in the past six years. Zandi said that the same kind of migratory pattern — from high-cost city to lower-cost city and then to even lower-cost suburb — is occurring among the nation’s most expensive markets. In coastal California, he said, the population had been relocating for several years to nearby states, but more recently statistics from the IRS show net out-migration to Inland California, which was previously farmland. Another aspect of the Washington area’s out-migration trend, according to demographer William Frey, is the “cashing out” of young retirees, many of them baby boomers, “who are leaving for more affordable places in Florida, the Southeast and even the West. So in a way metro D.C. is like a funnel — with new high-end and high-skilled workers splashing in at one end, and a ‘middle-class’ flight of younger families and retirees draining out the other.” (www.washingtonpost.com)
Washington Post (11/26/05); Sandra Fleishman

Lenders Push the Envelope to Get More Business Amid Higher Interest Rates

To make up for a gradual increase in interest rates and a slowly cooling housing market, mortgage lenders are turning to alternative payment products that are designed to lower monthly payments to help borrowers qualify more readily, according to Keith Gumbinger of HSH Associates, which tracks the mortgage banking industry. One of these new mortgages allows borrowers to pay only interest for a certain period, lowering their monthly payments so that they can take on larger loans. Other loans require little in the way of documentation during the approval process; these low-document loans are often marketed to consumers who have their own businesses and can verify their assets but have incomes that do not fit the traditional mode used to assess a borrower’s ability to make monthly loan payments. Although these low- or no-doc loans can become problematic to less creditworthy consumers, Art Frank, head of mortgage research at Nomura Securities International, Inc., expects to see them continuing to grow rapidly. Lenders expect to process $2.26 trillion worth of home loans next year, down from $2.78 trillion this year, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. Much of the drop will come from a slowdown in refinancing. (www.seattlepi.newsource.com)
Seattle Post-Intelligencer (11/23/05); Aleksandrs Rozens, Associated Press

Home Builders Finding New Focus

The urban infiltration of national home builders such as Pulte Homes, Centex and Toll Brothers, who have been staples of modern suburbia, has been a trend across the country for some time. Michigan-based Crosswinds Communities has plans for four mixed-use condominium towers in Jacksonville, Fla., the city’s first skyrise development by a national builder. Last month, Los Angeles-based home builder KB Home announced that it will create a high-density and mixed-use division called KB Urban, which at the outset will focus on cities with strong downtown cores. In part, the companies are responding to changing demographics. According to the National Association of Realtors, the share of home buyers who are married has been trending down since 1995. Single home buyers now make up 26% of the home buying market, according to one of the association’s recent surveys. And 57% of home buyers do not have children residing in their household. (www.jacksonville.com)
Florida Times-Union, Jacksonville (11/24/05); Joe Light

Record October Sales May Overstate Market Strength

Sales of new single-family homes jumped an unexpected 13.0% to a record seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.424 million units in October, the U.S. Commerce Department reported last week, leaving the month’s sales pace 9% ahead of the rate a year earlier.

“Home builders continue to see healthy demand for new homes and expect sales activity to continue at slightly more moderate levels in the months ahead,” said NAHB President David Wilson. “Our monthly Housing Market Index surveys of builders show that a majority have maintained a positive view of future sales but that builder sentiment has moved down from mid-year highs.”

“The great strength of new-home sales in October was surprising,” said NAHB Chief Economist David Seiders. “The upshift in interest rates may have pushed a lot of fence sitters into a buying mode, and builders may have deepened sales incentives to counter growing buyer resistance to home prices and interest rates. But it’s also likely that today’s report overstates the true pace of home sales because of well-know statistical deficiencies.”

Seiders noted that the Commerce Department’s monthly estimates of home sales are subject to a high degree of sampling variability and can be revised substantially, especially on a regional basis. “Indeed, the statistical confidence intervals around sales estimates for the Northeast and West are particularly wide,” he said, “and these regions drove the national sales numbers sharply upward in October. More data will be required to assess the true condition of the housing market as we move ahead.”

Sales for October surged 46.9% in the West and 43.3% in the Northeast. They climbed a modest 1.9% in the South and dropped 9.5% in the Midwest.

There was a 496,000-unit inventory of new homes for sale at the end of the month, which was equivalent to a 4.3-month supply at the current sales pace. For-sale units that had not yet been started represented 20% of the total inventory. Units still under construction accounted for 59%, and completed homes for sale were 21% ― a smaller proportion than a year ago.

Housing Affordability Slumps to Record Low in Third Quarter

Indianapolis is the nation’s most affordable housing market among major metropolitan areas with populations over 500,000, according to the NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Opportunity Index (HOI) for this year’s third quarter.

Other top major metros for housing affordability were Youngstown-Warren and Boardman, Ohio-Pa.; Detroit-Litonia-Dearborn, Mich.; Buffalo-Niagara Falls, N.Y. and Oklahoma City, Okla., in that order.

Challenged by steadily rising home prices, overall housing affordability across the country fell for the third consecutive quarter to its lowest level since the HOI was first reported in 1992, dipping 2.7 points to 43.2. This means that just over 43% of all new and existing homes sold in the country during the third quarter were affordable to families with a median income. The decline was mostly attributable to a 5% increase in the average price of homes sold during the three-month period.

“Strong house-price performance is the double-edged sword that has simultaneously attracted and discouraged new home buyers,” said NAHB President Dave Wilson.

Although mortgage interest rates have been on the rise since September, the average weighted interest rate for fixed- and adjustable-rate mortgages used to calculate third-quarter affordability held at 5.84%, just above 5.82% during the April-June period.

In Indianapolis, 89.7% of new and existing homes sold in the third quarter were affordable to families earning the area’s median income of $64,000. The median price of homes sold in Indianapolis during that time was $125,000.

By comparison, in the nation’s least affordable major housing market of Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale, Calif., a mere 2.4% of all homes sold were affordable to those earning the median income of $54,500 and the median sales price was $495,000.

California once again dominated the HOI rankings for the least affordable major metropolitan areas. Right behind Los Angeles were Santa Ana-Anaheim-Irvine; San Diego-Carlsbad-San Marcos and Stockton. Among the top five least affordable major housing markets, New York-White Plains-Wayne, N.Y.-N.J. was the only one not located in California.

In metro areas with populations of less than 500,000, Mansfield, Ohio was the most affordable, followed by Cumberland, Md.; Lima, Ohio; Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, Iowa-Ill.; and Lansing-East Lansing, Mich., respectively. At the bottom of the list were the California cities of Merced, Salinas, Santa Barbara-Santa Maria, Modesto and Santa Cruz-Watsonville.

Where Are the Top 100 Metropolitan Areas for 2006?

“HousingEconomics Online,” the online publication from the NAHB Economics Group, is your single source for market analysis, forecasts, housing statistics and more. In-depth analysis, detailed Excel tables and overviews are available for all metro forecasts. To learn more or subscribe to “HousingEconomics Online”, visit www.housingeconomics.com.

Single-Family Conforming Loan Limit to Rise to $417,000

The Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight (OFHEO) announced on Nov. 29 that the maximum 2006 conforming loan limit for single-family mortgages purchased by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will increase to $417,000 for one-unit properties, from the current limit of $359,650. The increase will be effective Jan. 1, 2006.

Following the charters of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the conforming loan limit is adjusted annually based on the October-to-October percentage increase in the Federal Housing Finance Board’s (FHFB) home price index, the statutory basis for annual adjustments in the loan limit. The FHFB index increased 15.96% between October 2004 and October 2005 to an average home price of $306,759.

Loan limits for larger properties will also increase. Effective Jan. 1, limits on these properties will increase to:

Limits for FHA-insured single-family loans will also increase in some areas as a result of the increase in the Freddie Mac conforming loan limit. Local limits are based on 95% of area median home prices. However, the limit cannot exceed the ceiling for high-cost areas, which is 87% of the Freddie Mac limit, or be less than the lowest FHA loan limit, or floor, which is 48% of the Freddie Mac limit.

Based on the 2006 Freddie Mac limit, NAHB expects the FHA ceiling and floor in 2006 to become approximately $362,790, and $200,160, respectively. HUD will officially announce the new FHA levels near the end of this year.

The conforming loan limit may be increased by up to 50% for Alaska, Guam, Hawaii and the Virgin Islands, which would mean that the Fannie/Freddie limit for these areas would become $625,500 for a one-unit property, up from $539,750. The FHA ceiling for these areas could be as high as $544,185, depending on median area home prices.

In addition, the guarantee amount for loans guaranteed by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is 25% of the conforming loan limit. Therefore, the maximum, no-downpayment, VA-guaranteed loan will be $417,000 for 2006.

For more information, e-mail William Renner at NAHB, or call him at 800-368-5242 x8597.

Commerce Department Agrees Canadian Lumber Unsubsidized

Although the U.S. Commerce Department on Nov. 22 agreed to comply with a North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) verdict finding that Canadian softwood lumber is not subsidized, countervailing duties amounting to 17.2% and anti-dumping tariffs averaging 4% are expected to remain in effect for the foreseeable future.

“While this is a positive step, several NAFTA panels have previously ruled that the Administration must rescind these punishing tariffs on Canadian lumber that inflate housing costs and harm consumers,” said NAHB President David Wilson. “It’s time for Washington to end its stalling tactics and to comply with its legal obligations by eliminating these border taxes and refunding to Canada the duties that have been collected.”

The U.S. government imposed countervailing and anti-dumping duties totaling 27% on softwood lumber in May of 2002, charging that Canadian imports represented a “threat” to domestic lumber. The percentage was subsequently reduced but remained above 20%.

U.S. law permits countervailing duties to be imposed only if a foreign supplier is benefiting from subsidies and U.S. producers are being injured, or threatened with injury, as a result.

Last month’s action by the Commerce Department implements an Oct. 5 NAFTA ruling which determined that the subsidy is below 1%; under U.S. law this means that the lumber imports are not subject to duties.

Both sides now have up to six weeks to issue comments on the verdict, and the U.S. would then have an additional 30 days to challenge the panel’s final order calling on the Commerce Department to eliminate countervailing duties on imports. The ruling has no effect on anti-dumping duties of 4%.

Even after this time period, the U.S. could seek further delays by taking its case to an Extraordinary Challenge Committee. While no extraordinary challenge has ever been successful, it could drag the case out an additional six months before the panel’s verdict is finally upheld.

Several NAFTA panel decisions have unanimously determined that the Commerce Department was using flawed calculations to reach the conclusion that Canadian lumber is subsidized. And on Aug. 10, a NAFTA Extraordinary Challenge Committee upheld an earlier NAFTA ruling that found no threat of injury from Canadian imports. It also stipulated that the U.S. was required to refund the billions of dollars of duties that Canada has paid to date.

Although a NAFTA ruling carries the weight of law in Canada, the U.S. and Mexico, the Administration has failed to implement decisions that invalidate the lumber duties and return all duties paid out by Canadian firms.

For more information, e-mail Michael Strauss at NAHB, or call him at 800-368-5242 x8252.

Want to Know Your State’s 2006 Forecasts?

“HousingEconomics Online,” the online publication from the NAHB Economics Group, is your single source for market analysis, forecasts, housing statistics and more. In-depth analysis, detailed Excel tables and overviews are available for all the state forecasts. To learn more or subscribe to “HousingEconomics Online,” visit www.housingeconomics.com.

Eye on the Economy

By David F. Seiders, NAHB Chief Economist
The U.S. Economy Already Is Leaving Negative Hurricane Effects in Its Wake

Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast on Aug. 29, and Rita and Wilma were not far behind. The immediate impacts caused an outright reduction in U.S. economic output in September, but strong pre-hurricane momentum carried economic growth forward for the third quarter as a whole.

Indeed, the Commerce Department has just revised growth of real gross domestic product (GDP) upward to an annual rate of 4.3% for the third quarter ― the fastest pace since early 2004. The housing production component of GDP grew at a robust 8.4% pace and contributed half a percentage point to the overall GDP growth rate. That’s a lot.

Incoming data reinforce the pattern of solid underlying momentum in growth of real economic output into the fourth quarter, despite some lingering negatives from this year’s record-breaking hurricane season. We’re projecting 3.4% growth of real GDP in the fourth quarter, a very nice performance, and we expect even stronger growth early next year as the hurricane effects swing from negative to positive.

Energy prices were historically high prior to Katrina, and the onslaught of the hurricanes drove these prices up sharply to new record highs. The price surges were fueled not only by immediate disruptions to supply, particularly for gasoline, but also by severe assessments of the degree of damage to energy production and transmission infrastructure along the Gulf Coast.

We now know that imports of crude oil and refined petroleum products quickly helped to fill in for lost domestic production, and it’s become clear that the degree and duration of damage to our energy infrastructure were not as severe as initially believed. As a result, prices of crude oil and gasoline have fallen substantially from their post-Katrina peaks and now actually stand below pre-hurricane levels.

Although natural gas prices promise to remain elevated for some time, the dramatic turnaround in other components of the energy markets has brightened the picture for both near-term real economic growth and core inflation.

The National Labor Market Is Fundamentally Healthy Despite Problems on the Gulf Coast

The labor market started to show systematic cyclical improvement in the fall of 2003, and the strengthening pattern continued until Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast at the end of August. National payroll employment fell slightly in September and showed only a slight increase in October (preliminary data) as the hurricanes took their toll on jobs in the Gulf area.

Despite the hurricane-related setbacks, the national labor market still is fundamentally healthy, and the forward momentum of real economic output (GDP) is sure to lift the payroll employment numbers in the immediate future (we expect a solid increase in November). Indeed, trends in seasonally adjusted claims for unemployment insurance, excluding identifiable hurricane effects, suggest a continued strong trend in employment growth. That’s very good news, of course, but rising labor costs are likely to create complications on the inflation front down the line.

The hurricane-related surge in energy prices drove both the producer price index (PPI) and the consumer price index (CPI) out of sight in September, while the core components of both measures (excluding prices of food and energy) remained in the historically low ranges prevailing since early this year.

A slowdown in energy price inflation at the wholesale level brought down overall PPI inflation to some degree in October, and an outright decline in energy prices at the retail level reduced overall CPI inflation considerably. The news on core inflation was even better, as the core PPI for finished goods slowed to a 1.9% year-over-year pace and the core CPI posted a modest 2.1% increase. The technically superior chain-core CPI (allowing for substitution among goods and services in the market basket) showed a year-over-year rise of only 1.7% in October, the slowest pace in a year.

These performances hardly mean that core inflation is a non-issue, and the Fed has been stressing inevitable pass-through of historically high energy prices into the core down the line. The stunning reversal of the hurricane-induced spike in energy prices has diffused that issue to some degree, although some increase in core inflation still seems inevitable in both 2006 and 2007 as energy prices remain at high levels and labor markets tighten further.

The Federal Reserve raised the federal funds rate to 4.0% at the Nov. 1 meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee, and the FOMC issued a statement saying that monetary policy remained accommodative (even after the rate hike) and that remaining policy accommodation can be removed at a “measured pace.” The FOMC statement also stressed strong underlying momentum in real economic activity as well as heightened risks to core inflation due to record high energy prices.

These messages pointed toward an extended series of quarter-point rate hikes that could extend well into 2006, and some private sector forecasts showed the funds rate as high as 6% by the end of next year. However, the combination of good news on core consumer price inflation for October and large declines in energy prices from post-hurricane highs softened the outlook for Fed policy, and the minutes from the Nov. 1 FOMC meeting showed less inflation concern than the markets had feared.

We still expect the Fed to hike the federal funds rate to 4.25% at the Dec. 13 FOMC meeting, and we still believe that the funds rate will top out at 4.50% at the Jan. 31 meeting (Fed Chairman Alan Greenspan’s last FOMC meeting). Ben Bernanke, the President’s nominee to replace Greenspan, may accent the Fed’s inflation-fighting resolve with a quarter-point rate hike at his first FOMC meeting (March 28), but we’ll just have to wait and see about that.

The minutes from the Nov. 1 FOMC meeting (released on Nov. 23) showed maintenance of strong anti-inflation resolve at our central bank but also revealed an emergence of concern about the risks of “going too far with the tightening process.” The minutes also suggested that references to “accommodative” monetary policy and messages about future policy moves (the “measured pace” language) are likely to disappear from FOMC statements before long. In this regard, the minutes noted that policy changes “would need to be increasingly sensitive to incoming economic data” rather than being dominated by an inexorable upward drift toward an elusive definition of monetary neutrality.

Mid-November testimony before the Senate Banking Committee by Bernanke also appeared to calm financial markets. Bernanke made it perfectly clear that he is not dovish on inflation and that he will be “strictly independent of all political influences” as Fed chairman. With respect to explicit inflation targeting by the Fed — a prominent Bernanke theme in his earlier academic circles ― the nominee stressed that “judgment and flexibility” would remain important in the policy-making process and that an inflation target would “in no way reduce the importance of maximum employment as a policy goal.”

The soothing effects of the FOMC minutes and the Bernanke testimony halted the upshift in long-term rates that had begun around mid-September, and long rates have changed little, on balance, since mid-November. We’re still expecting long-term rates to move up by about half a percentage point during the next year, taking the fixed-rate home mortgage to about 6.75% in late 2006, but the impacts of our projected upshift in the interest rate structure on housing and the economy should not be severe.

The Housing Market Apparently Has Begun to ‘Cool’ Following an Impressive Run

Although there are some mixed signals, the majority of housing market indicators now suggests a recent topping-out of home sales and housing production. Thus the long-awaited “cooling” process apparently is underway after an unprecedented multi-year housing surge.

Housing starts and permit issuance moved down convincingly in October, showing reductions for both single-family and multifamily units, and the declines were broad-based by region. The backlog of unused permits also moved down, pretty much across-the-board, tempering the outlook for housing starts in November.

Measures of home sales were mixed for October. Sales of existing single-family homes (based on closings) were down moderately for the month, and all regions showed some erosion. On the other hand, new-home sales (based on contract signed or deposits taken) posted a surprising 13% increase in October as the Northeast and West regions showed 43% and 47% month-to-month increases, respectively. But immense confidence intervals surrounding the Commerce Department’s estimates of new-home sales, particularly for the Northeast and West regions, challenge the reliability of the preliminary calculations.

At this point, we’re highly skeptical of the new-home sales report for October and believe that subsequent revisions as well as estimates for future months will be more consistent with the cooling process we’re convinced is underway.

Our confidence in the cooling process is reinforced by monthly surveys of single-family homebuilders (conducted by NAHB) and weekly surveys of home mortgage lenders (conducted by the Mortgage Bankers Associations). Our single-family housing market index (HMI) fell sharply in early November and is well below the cyclical high in June. Indeed, all the components of the HMI (current sales, buyer traffic and sales expectations) are well off recent highs, and all regions are down significantly as well.

From the lenders’ perspective, the MBA’s index of applications for mortgages to buy homes was essentially flat during the July-September period and gravitated downward during October and most of November (four-week moving average basis).

Available data obviously do not build an ironclad case of systematic cooling in the single-family housing market. But deteriorating measures of affordability, including NAHB’s Housing Opportunity Index, are being weighed down by both extraordinarily high house prices and rising mortgage interest rates, and these factors support the case.

Strong Foundations and Post-Hurricane Rebuilding Will Limit Downward Housing Adjustments

While home sales and housing production are bound to move off recent highs, the downward adjustments are likely to be moderate and orderly and will not constitute a classic cyclical contraction. In other words, we’re expecting an adjustment toward “sustainability” after about a year of above-trend sales and production in single-family and condo markets. This process also should involve a slowdown in price appreciation to a more sustainable long-term pace (around 5% nationally).

We’re now updating and extending NAHB’s long-term housing forecasts. This process involves estimation of fundamental demand drivers (household formations, replacement needs and vacancies — including second homes) as well as the composition of supply (single family, multifamily and manufactured home units).

Our forecasts for total new housing units average about 2.1 million units per year for the 2006-2014 period, higher than the average for the first half of this decade (because of relatively high numbers in the out years), and conventionally-built housing units average about 1.9 million units per year. Thus the foundations for housing markets should be quite strong in the years ahead.

NAHB Chief Economist David Seiders analyzes the economy from the point of view of the housing market every other week in the free e-newsletter, “Eye on the Economy.” The preceding is a reissue of his Nov. 30 edition. To subcribe to “Eye on the Economy,” click here.

Anticipate the trends, make better decisions and improve your bottom line. "HousingEconomics.com," the online publication from NAHB Economics Group, is your single source for market analysis, forecasts, housing statistics and more. In-depth analysis and detailed Excel tables and overviews are available for all the state and metro forecasts.

“HousingEconomics.com” combines unique scientific research with practical applications providing insights that are original and useful. This interactive Web site at the executive level provides critical data and information quickly, easily and frequently and includes the following features:

Builder's Tip: The Best Place to Put Smoke Detectors

Every year, people who have battery-powered smoke detectors in their homes are put at risk because the batteries die and nobody bothers to replace them.

I think this happens because the detectors have to be mounted high in the room and home owners typically need a ladder or a stepstool to reach them, so they don’t bother.

Here’s a location that is both high and accessible ― the hatch cover to a pull-down attic stair.

To change the battery or check its operation, simply pull on the stair’s rope. Now the detector is right at eye level.

BuilderBooks.com Offers More Than 250 Books That Help You Build Your Business

BuilderBooks.com is your source for training and education products for the building industry. The official bookstore for NAHB, BuilderBooks.com offers award-winning publications, software, brochures and more available in both English and Spanish. To view these publications online, click here, or call 800-223-2665.

Subscribe Your Employees to Nation’s Building News — and a Chance to Win Digital Camera

Subscribe your employees to Nation’s Building News Online. It’s free, easy and NAHB members who sign up three or more employees will be entered into the "Make Your Business Click" contest to win a digital camera. To learn more or sign up your employees, click here.

Why Owners Actually Sell Their Companies to Employees

In the first article you learned why business owners want to sell their companies to their key employees. But motives can be very different from outcomes.

In this second article, I will discuss five key reasons why owners actually do sell their companies to their employees.

If you are considering a sale to key employees, you must work with advisors skilled in designing this type of transfer. You must also allow adequate time to complete the transfer.

To read why owners say they want to sell their companies to key employees, the first article in the series, click here.

Ken Stiefler is president of eXITS, LLC and Stiefler Financial Solutions in Denver and has worked with business owners for more than 21 years to help them achieve their financial and succession objectives. Stiefler is an affiliate member of the Business Enterprise Institute Network of Exit Planning Advisors and the Home Builders Association of Metro Denver. For more information, call Stiefler at 303-695-6994, or visit his web site at www.kasfinancialsolutions.com.

NAHB Has More Than 170 Resources to Help You Run Your Business More Profitably

Go to NAHB's Business Management Tools Web pages (available to members only) for instant access to more than 170 timesaving, moneymaking and cost-cutting business resources to help you run your business more profitably. Get guidance on accounting and financial management, business strategy, computers and information technology, customer service, human resources and more.

Resources are added weekly, so bookmark www.nahb.org/biztools to go directly to these vital business management resources.

Local and state home builders associations can link directly to www.nahb.org/biztools from their Web site and give their members instant access to these resources. It will make your HBA's Web site the place to go for the information and guidance that members need to succeed.

NAHB’s Business of Building e/Source is your monthly electronic guide to the hot issues and emerging trends in home building business management. You’ll find practical advice, tricks of the trade and sound business guidance — all delivered monthly, straight to your desktop, in a quick and easy-to-read format. Business of Building e/Source is available free to NAHB members and their employees. To subscribe, visit www.nahb.org/BoB on the Members Only side of the NAHB Web site.

Manually Lifted Balloon Framed Walls Present Hazards

A new Safety and Health Information Bulletin from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is alerting employers and employees that manually raised balloon framed walls can fall back onto workers when they become too heavy to be held.


Example of carpenters manually raising a balloon framed wall with a chimney chase attached. As the photo depicts, more than 10 workers are exposed to being struck by the wall if it collapses onto them.

The “Hazards of Manually Lifting Balloon Framed Walls” advisory, which was prepared with assistance from NAHB, also provides a list of safe lifting methods to prevent an accidental collapse from occurring.

During a five-year period ending in July of 2004, OSHA received reports of 22 balloon framed wall collapses that resulted in the deaths of five employees and 28 injuries.

Balloon framing involves the placement of framed walls, generally over 10 feet high, that run the entire vertical length from the structure’s floor sill plate to the roof. Although manual labor has been used to raise these walls for years, the walls have been getting heavier because of contemporary construction designs, the bulletin warns.

Although many employers have attempted to address the problem by developing guidelines for workers involved in this activity, the guidelines are not consistent and often rely heavily on the foreman to estimate the weight of the wall and the number of employees that will be needed to lift it, OSHA says.

The OSHA alert provides several methods that can be used in combination to prevent employees from being struck by walls that collapse onto them:

For more information, e-mail Rob Matuga at NAHB, or call him at 800-368-5242 x8507.

The “Jobsite Safety Video,” available through BuilderBooks.com, provides an overview of the key safety issues residential builders and workers need to focus on to reduce accidents and injuries. Based on the “NAHB-OSHA Jobsite Safety Handbook,” this DVD is intended to be used as part of an essential residential construction safety-training program and includes two 20-minute videos. To view or purchase this DVD online, click here, or call 800-223-2665.

Porter-Cable Circular Saws Recalled for Repairs

Although no injuries have been reported from using the product, the lower guard on the saws could stick in the open position, posing a risk of severe lacerations to consumers.

About 196,000 of the saws have been manufactured by Porter-Cable, of Jackson, Tenn., and they were sold at major home center and hardware stores nationwide from March 2004 through last month for between $130 and $160, depending on the model.

Consumers should stop using the circular saws immediately and contact Porter-Cable for the location of the nearest service center to receive a free inspection and repair, if one is needed.

The recall involves saws with model numbers 324MAG (serial numbers 10001 through 108962), 325MAG (serial numbers 10001 through 014712), 423MAG (serial numbers 10001 through 100371) and 424MAG (serial numbers 10001 through 012690).

The model and serial numbers are located on a label on the top of the saws. Units marked with a “T” at the location shown below have been inspected and are not affected by this recall. “Porter-Cable®” is written on the side of these saws.

Consumers can call Porter-Cable at 800-949-7930 between 8:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. Central Time Monday through Friday, or visit the company’s Web site, www.porter-cable.com.

Focus Group to Address Section 8 Vouchers in Assisted Living

NAHB is seeking members to participate in a focus group discussion about using Section 8 housing vouchers in assisted living facilities (ALFs). Participation will require providing construction and operating cost information on current or recent projects.

NAHB believes that HUD should establish higher fair market rents (FMRs) for ALFs than for other multifamily units.

NAHB is arguing that FMRs in many communities are too low to permit the use of Section 8 vouchers in ALFs, and that the problem arises because rents (not including payment for services) typically are higher in ALFs than in standard rental units due to higher costs of construction and operations.

The purpose of the focus group, which will take place during the International Builders' Show in Orlando, Fla., is to gather the necessary information.

To participate or for more information, contact Claudia Kedda at NAHB at 800-368-5242 x8352, or Jeff Jenkins, x8292.

Rentals the Weak Side of Third-Quarter Remodeling Market

Remodeling activity slowed moderately in this year’s third quarter, according to NAHB’s Remodeling Market Index (RMI).

The component of the index gauging current market conditions dropped 1.5 points from 52.4 to 50.9 in the third quarter, while the future expectations of the 500 remodelers surveyed nationally each quarter for the seasonally-adjusted index moved down from 52.8 to 51.8.

“A softening of the overall rental market has led to an acute decline in rental remodeling expenditures,” said Remodelors™ Council Chairman Don Novak, CGR, CAPS, CGB, a remodeler from Cedar Rapids, Iowa. “Remodeling activity remains strong for owner-occupied units, driving the continued positive outlook.” Owner-occupied housing represents 69% of total housing in the U.S.

Regionally, strong improvement in the Midwest, which rose from 44.7 to 50.2 on the index, was offset by slight declines in the South and West, down from 55.7 to 53.7 and 58.5 to 56.3, respectively, and a sharp drop in the Northeast from 59.1 to 43.6.

“The small declines in the overall RMI measures of current market conditions and expectations for the future reflect relatively firm readings for owner-occupied housing but serious deterioration for the rental housing market,” said NAHB Chief Economist Dave Seiders. “A massive amount of equity in the hands of home owners bodes well for this segment of the remodeling market down the line, and declining vacancies in rental housing should improve the prospects for remodeling of the rental stock before long. Furthermore, remodeling activity will be stimulated by recovery from this year’s unprecedented hurricane damage.”

Owner-occupied units saw almost no change in current market activity; they dropped one-tenth of a point to 56.2. Renter-occupied units declined from 45.8 to 37.9. Future expectations for owner-occupied units moved slightly downward, from 55.8 to 55.4, while the outlook for renter-occupied units skidded sharply from 43.0 to 31.0.

In a special question added to the third-quarter survey for the index, remodelers were asked about prospects for the growth of their businesses.

Participating remodelers said that they expected their dollar volume to grow 11% this year to an average of $1.353 million, up from $1.217 million in 2004.

Fifty-eight percent of the remodelers who were surveyed said that they plan to grow their businesses from within, while 4% said they expected to grow through an acquisition or merger.

Four out of 10 businesses said they had no plans to expand into other areas of work or new geographic regions. Approximately 11% reported that they had been approached by another business interested in acquiring them, an indication that chances for a major consolidation in the industry are not imminent.

Remodelers Needed for Hurricane Relief

Rebuilding Together, the nation’s largest volunteer home rehabilitation organization, is seeking volunteers in the skilled trades to help rebuild 1,000 homes in the Gulf Coast region that were destroyed by Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Rita.

Rebuilding Together is seeking 25,000 roofers, carpenters, plumbers, electricians and other skilled workers to commit to volunteering for at least one week as part of Rebuild 1000! — an effort to rehabilitate houses of low-income home owners, particularly those belonging to elderly and disabled citizens in the New Orleans metropolitan area and Gulfport.

“By engaging 25,000 volunteers, we will work to rebuild 1000 houses in the Gulf Coast, delivering well over $10 million in market value work,” said Patty Johnson, president and CEO of Rebuilding Together. “We call on every corporation, association, skilled trades group and every church, synagogue and mosque to join in this national mobilization to deliver safe, warm and dry conditions to hurricane-affected houses.”

An estimated 475,000 houses await rehabilitation, more than the number that will have to be torn down. The cost of repairing or rebuilding homes affected by Katrina will be more than $100 billion, according to estimates by the Enterprise Foundation.

Support for Rebuild 1000! has come from several sources ― from garage sales to a major corporate contribution from Countrywide Financial Corporation.

“Financial support is badly needed, and we are proud that we can typically quadruple every dollar given to Rebuilding Together by using donated materials and supplies and volunteer labor. In order to accomplish our goals, we need to raise $4 million, but we will stretch every dollar into many and preserve our existing housing stock,” said Johnson.

To learn more about the Rebuild 1000! volunteer effort, visit the Rebuilding Together Web site. To volunteer your time, click here, or call 877-294-3572.

Awards Recognize Systems-Built Marketing and Design

The Building Systems Councils (BSC) of NAHB announced the winners of its annual Excellence in Marketing & Home Design Awards competition during the recent Building Systems Councils’ SHOWCASE event in Louisville, Ky. The awards honor the builders and manufacturers responsible for the finest marketing materials and home designs in the concrete, log, modular and panelized home building industry.

Behind its growing popularity, systems-built housing provides benefits — such as rapid construction time, controlled product quality and overall energy efficiency — that address such major challenges in the residential construction industry as a shortage of skilled labor, increases in building materials prices and implementing cost controls.

Customized Structures Inc
Excellence in Home Design — modular home over 2,300 square feet

“Systems-built housing is no longer considered a niche market within the home building industry,” said Kelly McNally, chairman of the BSC’s Sales & Marketing Committee. “Today, many new homes are constructed with a building system, such as a simple roof truss or insulated concrete form foundation. As consumers and builders look forward to retaining the custom-design charm of modern homes while speeding up their construction time, systems-built housing is an increasingly popular construction option.”

The award winners listed below will be featured in the January/February 2006 issue of Building Systems Magazine, which will be distributed during the 2006 International Builders’ Show in Orlando, Fla. in January.

Kuhns Bros. Log Homes
Excellence in Design — log home over 2,300 square feet

Following are the winners of the 2006 marketing awards:

Arxx
Excellence in Home Design — concrete home over 2,300 square feet
Manufacturer Print Ad
Precision Craft Log Homes
Meridian, Idaho

Manufacturer Presentation of Home Plans (Log Homes Council)
Precision Craft Log Homes
Meridian, Idaho

Builder Web Site
Insulated Concrete Walls
Stuart, Fla.

Winners of awards for excellence in home design were:

Concrete Home Over 2,300 Square Feet
Arxx (Manufacturer)
Cobourg, Ontario, Canada

Modular Home Under 2,300 Square Feet
Dynamic Homes (Manufacturer)
Detroit Lakes, Minn.

Paula Rae Homes (Builder)
West Fargo, N.D.

Honorable Mention
Signature Building Systems (Manufacturer)
Moosic, Pa.

Philadelphia Residential (Builder)
North Wales, Pa.

Modular Home Over 2,300 Square Feet
Customized Structures Inc. (Manufacturer)
Claremont, N.H.

Darrell Hoss Builders (Builder)
Stamford, Conn.

Panelized Home Over 2,300 Square Feet
Forest Homes
Selinsgrove, Pa.

Outstanding Model Merchandising — Manufacturer
Epoch Homes
Pembroke, N.H.

Honorable Mention
Stratford Building Corporation
Rathdrum, Idaho

Go behind the scenes of the growing log homes industry at the Log Homes Council President’s Tour, March 19-22, in Harrisburg, Pa. President’s Tour attendees get access to some of the country’s premier log home manufacturing facilities and suppliers, learn from industry veterans and meet log home colleagues from across the country to discuss trends, designs and industry news.

When, How Crucial to Teaching Home Owner Maintenance

Until we learn how to imprint on home buyers the importance of taking excellent care of their new homes, complaints and litigation will continue to plague builders.

I learned about the power of imprinting ― establishing or fixing an idea firmly in the mind ― when I took my new kitten to the vet. To teach my indoor/outdoor cat to be traffic-wise, my vet suggested that I carry him to the side of the road and, when a car whooshed by, yell or otherwise startle him so that he would associate the sound of traffic with danger. That “kitten” has since stayed safely away from traffic for the past 14 years.

So how, you may ask, does pet training relate to home owner maintenance? Read on.

Shortly before most home owners close on their new homes, they begin to feel overwhelmed with all that must be done. Closing on the old house, arranging for new schools, starting utilities and handling countless other chores raise their stress level.

This is also about the time when most new home buyers receive their home owner maintenance education as part of the new home orientation. Is it any wonder that home owner maintenance manuals that are given at closing are rarely read?

They’ve moved into their new home, are surrounded by moving boxes and are more than content to just push buttons until each appliance works in some fashion.

The time to teach them about proper use and home owner maintenance is long gone. If you doubt this fact, conduct your own informal survey at any gathering. Just ask your owners how many of them have read the manuals that came with your home’s products.

There is an optimal time to educate new home buyers about maintenance. Step into their shoes to determine when.

From the time they have signed a contract and made their selections, they have ranged emotionally from being somewhat excited to completely obsessed. After all, building a new home is creative and adventurous. The best time to teach home buyers to be expert home owners is when their excitement level is high.

On the Web. If a builder puts photos of buyers’ homes under construction site on a Web page or has each production model photographed at various stages of construction, chances are his buyers will sit at their computers studying the photos and floor plans well into the night. Take advantage of that interest by putting home owner maintenance information on the Web as well.

In Model Homes. Model homes also make excellent learning environments. Invite all “expectant” home owners to attend a party and allow each a turn at setting thermostats, changing air filters and operating the appliances — possibly while baking cookies. While engaged in this kinesthetic activity ― which can make learning fun — they also will begin to bond with their future neighbors.

For Smaller Builders. Smaller builders can stage similar events in an upscale design center that caters to the custom and remodeling markets. Alternately, they may have recent buyers who would be willing to host a party for their future neighbors. Hosting the event would give them an opportunity to show off their new home and create some community bonding. It also helps if builders reward their hosts with gift certificates or some other appreciative item.

While home buyers are enjoying themselves learning about their new homes, inject a little healthy fear into the process.

For example, as buyers are setting the dishwasher to run, let them know that the selection dial should always be turned before shutting the door in order to avoid stripping the gears. (When this information, whether true or not, was related to me, I was so impressed that I have never failed to heed the warning!)

Also, allow everyone to see a beam of sunshine streaming through the window. Let them know that by regularly changing their air filters, running exhaust fans and operating the fresh air exchanger or furnace fan, they will be circulating healthier, safer air for themselves and their children.

By teaching your home buyers about home maintenance at a time and in a place conducive to learning, they will hear and remember more of what they need to know. This, in turn, will make them better new home owners.

Sara Lamia, M.A., MCSP, CAPS, CGA, is president of Home Building Coach, Inc. and the author of "Housebirth®," a workbook for "expectant home buyers." She also is a contributing editor of Green Building Magazine. For more information, e-mail Lamia, vist her Web site at www.buildingcoach.com, or call her at 970-402-2600.

For additional cutting-edge sales and marketing information, subscribe to NAHB’s Sales + Marketing Ideas magazine (www.smimagazine.com).

Click here to learn about membership benefits of the National Sales and Marketing Council and the Institute of Residential Marketing.

The Institute of Residential Marketing (IRM) offers four designation programs for sales and marketing professionals:

“Your New Home and How to Take Care of It,” available through BuilderBooks.com, has a new look. Give your customers invaluable, well-presented tips on maintenance to help keep their homes performing like new. This customer care booklet has useful checklists and a detailed log for home maintenance — the key to ongoing home owner satisfaction and critically important to your warranty program. To view or purchase this software online, click here, or call 800-223-2665.

Construction Managers Key to Customer Satisfaction

Construction managers play a huge role in overall new-home buyer customer satisfaction, according to a survey by J.D. Power and Associates (JDPA). The 2005 New-Home Builder Customer Satisfaction Study, released in September, incorporated for the first time customer ratings of the construction manager as a driver of overall customer satisfaction with new-home builders.

The study found that as consumers become more active in communicating with their home builders during the construction process, construction managers are nearly as important in influencing customer satisfaction as the builder’s sales staff.

“In years past, the construction manager worked primarily behind the scenes with little interaction with home owners,” said Paula Sonkin, executive director of real estate industries practice at JDPA. “Today, builders realize that everyone involved in the building process — from the salespeople to the construction staff — are representatives of the company. By proactively communicating with owners at every step of the process, builders create a huge opportunity to develop strong relationships with owners, which can ultimately lead to higher customer satisfaction with the finished home.”

The study also found that truly delighted home buyers — those rating their builders a 10 on a 10-point scale ― recommend their builder to nearly twice as many people compared to the average new-home buyer.

The 2005 study includes satisfaction ratings of builders in 30 of the largest U.S. home building markets.

Pulte Homes, including its Del Webb and DiVosta brands, ranked highest in 16 of 30 markets — up from 14 out of 25 markets in 2004. Centex Homes, including its Fox & Jacobs brand, ranks highest in 10 markets — up from three markets in 2004.

The 2005 New-Home Builder Customer Satisfaction Survey is based on responses of 73,353 buyers of newly built, single-family homes who provided feedback after living in their homes from four to 18 months, on average.

For more comprehensive builder ratings for all 30 U.S. markets and Toronto, visit www.jdpower.com.

For additional cutting-edge sales and marketing information, subscribe to NAHB’s Sales + Marketing Ideas magazine (www.smimagazine.com).

Click here to learn about membership benefits of the National Sales and Marketing Council and the Institute of Residential Marketing.

The Institute of Residential Marketing (IRM) offers four designation programs for sales and marketing professionals:

BuilderBooks.com offers a variety of sales and marketing publications online. To view or purchase these publications, click here.

NAHB Designations Give Members a Competitive Edge

Last February, more than 1,700 members completed their professional designation course work during NAHB’s National Designation Month. The designations they earned enabled them to stay well ahead of the curve and have given them an edge over their competition.

This February, The NAHB University of Housing is again sponsoring National Designation Month so members can hone their business skills and convey to their clients the superior training, practical experience and in-depth knowledge that come with earning an NAHB designation.

Scott Sevon, CGR, CAPS, GMB, president of Sevvonco, Inc., a custom home and remodeling firm based in Palatine, Ill., said his designations bring a sense of professionalism both to his reputation and his firm.

As part of National Designation Month, The NAHB University of Housing is offering licensed associations a 50% discount on student fees for all classes held in February.

NAHB will also be educating the public about the value of selecting builders and other members who hold NAHB designations, build support for continuing education programs and increase recognition of the rigorous training required for NAHB designations.

Several kick-off events for National Designation Month will be held at the International Builders' Show in Orlando, including a workshop to help associations launch or improve their education programs, and receptions honoring members with CGB, CGR, CGA, CGB, GBM, CAPS and MIRM designations. For more information on these events, go to www.buildersshow.com.

NAHB offers more than a dozen professional designations covering industry basics such as business management and marketing, as well as specialized classes including aging-in-place programs, property management and more. For information about designations, go to www.nahb.org/designations.

Sample Designations from NAHB

Certified Graduate Associate (CGA)
Developed specifically for NAHB associate members (including suppliers and financial services providers), the CGA program offers participants an opportunity to enhance their knowledge of the fundamentals of the home building industry.
Certified Graduate Builder (CGB)
An overview of key areas in today’s home building industry, the CGB curriculum covers business management, financial strategies, marketing techniques, construction technologies and more.
Certified Graduate Remodelor™ (CGR)
An exclusive professional designation that emphasizes business management skills as the key to a professional remodeling operation, the CGR designation trains remodelers in project management, design estimating and job costing along with other core skills relevant to the remodeling industry.
Certified Aging-in-Place Specialist (CAPS)
Developed by the NAHB Remodelors™ Council in collaboration with AARP, the NAHB Research Center and NAHB’s Seniors Housing Council, the CAPS program provides comprehensive, practical, market-specific information about working with older and maturing adults to remodel their homes for aging-in-place.
Registered in Apartment Management (RAM)
The longest running and most well-respected program of its kind, RAM is a comprehensive educational curriculum developed to augment the professional skills of managers of apartments, condominiums and cooperative housing.
Member, Institute of Residential Marketing (MIRM)
The most prestigious designation from the Institute of Residential Marketing, MIRM represents the highest level of achievement for professionals in new home marketing. MIRM graduates are required to complete all mandated course work and submit a case study for approval before graduating from the program.

For more information about NAHB’s designation programs, visit www.nahb.org/designations.

“Residential Property Management,” available through BuilderBooks.com, is the savvy property management guide to success. This comprehensive reference tool is the core text of the Registered Apartment Manager (RAM) program.

Education Calendar

Whether you’re new to the industry, hope to make your next career move or want to improve your company’s bottom line, The NAHB University of Housing can assist you in your educational pursuits.

Visit www.nahb.org/education for a comprehensive listing of courses throughout the country. Be sure to visit often in order to view the most up-to-date information in your area.

Subscribe Your Employees to Nation’s Building News — and Earn a Chance to Win Digital Camera

Make your connection to the latest housing industry news and information with www.nahb.org — the official public and members-only Web site of NAHB.

Green Building Awards Deadline Approaches

Set yourself apart from your competitors and show your expertise in the nation’s fastest growing market niche by entering your project in the 2006 National Green Building Awards.

The awards recognize those who have made a significant contribution to the principles of residential green building and will be presented at the 2006 National Green Building Conference on March 12-14 in Albuquerque, N.M.

Entries must be received by Dec. 23. A $300 fee is required for entries in all categories except Green Advocate of the Year and Green Program of the Year (new program).

All winners will be featured in NAHB publications and receive complimentary admission to the 2007 National Green Building Conference, the only national conference of its kind for the mainstream residential building industry.

Plan now to attend the 2006 Green Building Conference, March 12-14 in Albuquerque, N.M. The National Green Building Conference is the only national conference targeted to "green building" for the mainstream residential building industry. The high caliber education programs will give you a chance to meet other green-minded builders from all around the country as well as meet with exhibitors with products to help you build a better home. For more information, click here.

NCBC Offers Discounted Rates to New Members — Till Dec. 15

The National Commercial Builders Council (NCBC) is seeking new members who are ready to diversify their home building business to include commercial construction or who are adapting to less land availability in their area.

NCBC is offering discounted rates to new members who join the council by Dec. 15.

The commercial builders council offers members a variety of tools that will help members expand into or grow within the commercial building industry.

NCBC is offering new members a $30 discount off the regular annual dues rate of $75. Builders who join by Dec. 15 qualify for the discounted rate of $45 and get a free copy of "Light Commercial Construction for Home Builders," a free subscription to Commercial Builder magazine and other benefits.

NAHB membership is required to join NCBC. Builders who are unsure of their membership status should contact their local home builders associaton for more information.

Subscriptions to Commercial Builder magazine are also available without membership for $79.

For more information about the discounted rate for new members, e-mail Jill Pivovarov at NAHB, or call her at 800-368-5242 x8455.

Finalists Selected for EVHA Energy Efficiency Awards

Gold, silver and honorable mention winners will be designated, with one builder earning the “Builder of the Year” award.

A panel of energy-efficiency experts representing engineering, construction, design and marketing selected the finalists based on their homes’ energy value, design, construction methods and processes, marketing and customer relations efforts, and their ability to demonstrate a whole-house systems design approach.

In addition, the public can vote online for the “People’s Choice,” their favorite home design from among the finalists. Voting is open until Jan. 10. To vote online, click here.

EVHA is coordinated by the NAHB Research Center in partnership with the U.S. Department of Energy through the National Renewable Energy Laboratory and NAHB. For more information, visit www.nahbrc.org/evha, or contact Dr. Kevin Mo, EVHA program manager, at 301-430-6210.

NAHB Brief Seeks Clarification of ‘Navigable Waters’

Citing the need to halt excessive regulation and keep housing more affordable, NAHB has filed a friend-of-the-court brief on behalf of the petitioners in two wetlands cases before the U.S. Supreme Court: John A. Rapanos, et al. v. the United States and June Carabell, et al. v. the United States Army Corps of Engineers.

Both cases concern whether and when a non-navigable and even man-made feature, such as a ditch or storm sewer system, can be considered a “navigable water” under the Clean Water Act and thus be subject to federal permitting requirements.

“Complying with those requirements can add thousands of dollars to the cost of a new home without offering the environmental benefits the act was designed to promote,” said NAHB President Dave Wilson. “It’s a waste of taxpayer resources to treat a ditch for rainwater with the same scrutiny as we would the Snake River.”

When it created the Clean Water Act in 1987, Congress defined ditches as point sources, that is, channelized features that transport water and sediment from, for example, a subdivision and into a storm drain. Under the act, a permit is required to control sediment and other pollutants that leave a ditch and flow into navigable water. Requiring a permit before the water and sediment even reach a ditch, which was dug by the builder himself to construct a housing project, is much more onerous than was intended by the original legislation and doesn’t offer a corresponding benefit to improve water quality, NAHB contends.

“NAHB has developed comprehensive familiarity with the [Clean Water Act] permitting requirements, provides compliance advice to its members, and, unfortunately, has witnessed numerous situations where federal regulators have exercised their authority beyond the act’s limits,” the brief said.

“There are an estimated 3.9 million miles of roads in the nation, and regulations require that federally funded primary roads must be ‘designed … and maintained to have adequate drainage, cross drains, and ditch relief drains’,” the brief argues.

Requiring permits assuming that all these ditches are navigable and subject to regulation and permitting makes no sense and would be prohibitively expensive to administer, NAHB said. “Congress could not have intended such an absurd result.”

For more information, e-mail Calli Schmidt at NAHB, or call her at 800-368-5242 x8132.

Anti-Pollution Plans Key to Avoiding Storm Water Fines

The best way to make sure a project is in compliance with federal storm water requirements and to avoid onerous fines is a good Storm Water Pollution Protection Plan (SWPPP). Three Virginia engineering firms say that the right SWPPP isn’t too difficult if you remember three steps.

Preparation. The person whose name is on the permit application is responsible for the SWPPP. If it’s a developer, that means that they’ll be the one fined for non-compliance even if they’ve allowed the builder to begin working on the site. The SWPPP also needs the signature of the person responsible for performing inspections on the site.

You need to make sure that your SWPPP refers to all the elements that are on your approved site plan, including a complete description of your project and the proposed disturbed acreage, slope and storm water flow and drainage patterns. You also must identify potential sources of pollution and describe what you plan to do to reduce or control it — and where those controls will be located.

Make sure you refer to your erosion and sediment (E&S) control plan, spill prevention plan and countermeasures, wetlands delineation map and anything else that might be enforceable under your general permit.

The idea, says Barbara Young, of Rinker Design Associates in Manassas, Va., is to produce a document that demonstrates that you’re doing what you can, within the bounds of good engineering practices, to avoid problems associated with runoff.

Maintainance. As your project proceeds, your SWPPP will grow in size, which is why it’s a good idea to keep it in a three-ring binder, says Eileen Watson of Williamsburg Environmental Group in Herndon. You should include records of your regular inspections, lists of contractors and subcontractors working on your site, your proposed and actual construction schedule and all other pertinent information.

Keep your SWPPP binder easily accessible in the construction trailer, or, if you aren’t using one, in a storage shed, phone booth or, as a last resort, the back of your pickup truck. “The important thing is that all records should be kept on site, with a copy off site in your office,” says Watson.

If your SWPPP is accessible, you can bring it with you to pre-construction meetings with your subs and make sure that they are familiar with their roles and responsibilities, especially when it comes to erosion and sediment controls. You want to be sure that your subs know where to place the portable toilet (a hint: not near a stream or anyplace where any pumping or drainage problems result in a spill that hits the sewer system), what to do about diesel tanks, how to keep silt fences in place.

Inspection. Remember to document, document, document. The Responsible Land Disturber (RLD), a licensed professional engineer or a certified third-party inspector must inspect the site a minimum of every two weeks or within 48 hours of rainfall that could cause potential runoff from your site. They should inspect all pertinent areas of the job site except those that you have designated as stabilized — and that designation needs to appear as an update to your SWPPP.

In addition to the disturbed areas, make sure you inspect places where you have stored materials that may be exposed to rainwater, such as fuel tanks, piles of backfill, or fertilizers and paints. You can be sure that these are the first places that a state inspector will look, says Jason Murnock of Angler Environmental in Manassas.

Continue to inspect until you have established sufficient permanent vegetation to withdraw your E&S measures, Murnock says. When you have marked those stable areas on your SWPPP, you don’t need to worry about the state inspecting them any more.

Make sure you avoid situations that red-flag your project for a state inspector: if you need a silt fence along a public road and it’s down, or your construction entrance is full of dirt or mud, or there’s a buildup of trash and sediment near the curb inlet, there’s a better chance that the EPA or its state agent will come knocking.

On the bright side, builders and developers who develop a reputation for maintaining a clean site and keeping their SWPPP inspection records up to date are less likely to be monitored, and thus less likely to be fined for non-compliance. “Do your best, show honest reports, and don’t gloss over your E&S failures,” which are always likely to happen, said Murnock. “That’s the best way to be bumped into the back of the line.”

To read elsewhere in this issue about how the EPA is cracking down on storm water permit enforcement, click here.

Hurricanes and $22.6 Million Settlement Put Focus on Mold

This fall’s hurricanes in the Gulf Coast, Texas and Florida and a record settlement in a single-family home case where the owners claimed that mold caused personal injuries, including brain damage to their son, have returned the mold issue to the forefront.

Public hysteria over this issue has been fading and the news media has been providing more balanced information about mold. For example, a recent report by MSNBC.com was headlined, "Existence of toxic mold syndrome questioned — Researchers say most symptoms can be explained by other illnesses."

Recommended reading for the housing industry in all parts of the country, the comprehensive CDC report provides information on how to limit exposure to mold and how to identify and prevent mold-related health effects, including up-to-date information on assessing exposure, cleanup and prevention, personal protective equipment, health effects and public health strategies and recommendations.

“The best way to get rid of mold growth is to remove it from materials that can be effectively cleaned and to discard materials that cannot be cleaned or are physically damaged beyond use,” the CDC advises.

On mold-related health concerns, the report notes that, “If left undisturbed, mold is generally not a significant health hazard for most people, and moderate exposure to mold will not adversely affect them.” Further, the CDC says that, “Sampling for mold is not part of a routine building assessment. In most cases appropriate decisions concerning remediation and need for personal protection equipment (PPE) can be made solely on the basis of visual inspection.”

While arguably an aberration, the California case provides a cautionary tale and a reminder to builders and remodelers to be vigilant when dealing with moisture-related issues.

According to published reports, the settlement totaled $22.6 million, including $13 million from a lumberyard after the trial had progressed for six weeks, and just under $10 million from 16 other defendants prior to the trial.

The case involved the owner of a custom built-home who claimed that mold contamination in the house had caused property damage and personal injuries. The owner claimed that his son, who was born three months after the family moved into the home, suffered developmental delays, including generalized brain injury.

During the trial, the owner argued that the lumber company used lumber that was contaminated with mold, which in turn contaminated the entire house. The lumber company argued that there was no evidence of mold in the lumber delivered to the construction site.

The judge reportedly allowed the home owner to present to the jury all of his "evidence" of alleged neurological injury, or "organic brain disorder" resulting from mold exposure, while precluding several lumber company experts from testifying, a possible reason for a decision to settle. Mold cases almost always involve competing experts, and parties who have been able to successfully defend themselves in these cases have typically prevented the jury from hearing certain evidence of mold-related injuries or used experts to dispute its validity.

Of concern to the housing industry is that the size of the settlement might encourage some new mold litigation or embolden counsel in some current cases, although nobody knows what verdict the jury would have reached had it deliberated. Moreover, more courts than not have been excluding mold evidence. Nonetheless, whether a case is settled or is tried, it can be costly and builders and remodelers should focus on what they can do on the front-end to minimize potential liability.

Software Forums to Show How to Boost Profits

Nudging your subs toward adopting 21st-century home building technology, using wireless communication in the field and speeding up the construction process with scheduling software are among the topics that will be covered at four Builder Technology Forums during the upcoming International Builders’ Show and techHOMExpo in Orlando, Fla.

The interactive forums — which were featured for the first time at last year’s show — are designed to help convention-goers understand how today’s technological tools can help build a more efficient and profitable business.

Builders and software experts will be sharing the podium to provide the lowdown on specific IT and software issues and opportunities, with plenty of time for questions, at these four sessions:

For more information, e-mail contact Wil Heslop, executive director of NAHB’s Business Management Department, or call him at 800-368-5242 x8472.

Educational Resources Focus on Building With Concrete

A series of educational resources focused entirely on residential concrete construction has been created through a partnership between Home Builders Institute (HBI), the workforce development arm of NAHB, and the association’s recently formed Concrete Home Building Council (CHBC).

Cement-based wall systems are being used in more than 16% of new, above-grade housing construction, and residential applications for the material continue to grow, increasing the need for skilled labor in this specialized area.

"This partnership supports NAHB's mission of educating its builder membership in the latest technologies to construct affordable, quality housing throughout the country,” said Michael Weber, president of the CHBC. “HBI's expertise in delivering quality training is a perfect match for delivering the knowledge-base for cement building systems and products to our members."

Working with Brookline, Mass.-based curriculum designer Building Works Inc., HBI’s Residential Construction Academy (RCA) and the council have developed three courses that will debut early next year: “Concrete Mix Designs and Troubleshooting” in Atlanta, followed by “Masonry Veneer Walls” in Winston-Salem, N.C. and “Best Practices for Concrete Pavers and Segmental Retaining Walls” in Kalamazoo, Mich.

The courses will then be made available nationwide through state and local home builders associations and company training programs.

The courses are modeled after HBI’s Residential Construction Superintendent (RCS) designation and students who successfully complete them will receive a certificate recognizing their knowledge of cement-based building systems and products.

The CHBC was founded to serve as the authority on cement-based building materials for the building industry — a resource builders, contractors and architects can use to find the latest techniques, navigate the code-compliance maze and identify businesses across the country involved in the new technologies.

In addition to implementing the concrete superintendent courses, RCA is working with CHBC on adding a “Masonry and Concrete” text to its library of residential educational materials — a publishing venture with Thomson Delmar Learning that brings these resources to secondary and post-secondary educational institutions and workforce training programs.

Current texts in the series include: “House Wiring,” “Carpentry, Plumbing,” “HVAC,” “Basic Principles for Construction” and “Electrical Principles.” “Facilities Maintenance” will be published soon. Each textbook and its corresponding curriculum are based on industry standards established by NAHB members.

For more information, e-mail Joseph Krinock at HBI, or call him at 800-795-7955 x8928; or contact Dawn Faull at the Concrete Home Building Council, 800-368-5242 x8362.

Join NAHB’s Concrete Home Building Council on a two-day bus tour, June 11-13, in Phoenix, of several cement and concrete production facilities to learn and experience first-hand the technologies and considerations going into this fast-growing market segment — from swimming pools and homescaping products to concrete exterior walls and more. This is your chance to capitalize on the rising popularity of residential concrete construction.

HBAs Receive Grants to Set Up Training Sites

HBI received $4.2 million from the Department of Labor under the President’s High Growth Job Training Initiative to finance the effort, in which HBAs will be working with community colleges, local school districts, area employers and workforce development boards to set up a site where young people will be prepared for careers in the home building industry.

Five other associations in Florida, Idaho, Kentucky, South Carolina and Virginia were selected earlier this year to participate in the program.

The program’s goal is to recruit 250 participants for each site, where they will receive high-quality, hands-on training in carpentry, electrical wiring, plumbing and HVAC.

HBI and its local partners will also develop an associate’s degree or an equivalent credential that incorporates residential construction skills. The training sites will serve as “best practices” examples that can be replicated around the country.

The goal of HBI’s “Building Today’s Workforce for Tomorrow” effort is to educate young people about the wide range of career opportunities in residential construction and to help meet the rising demand for skilled labor in the industry.

“Construction is not just hard labor. It is skilled labor, using computers and your head. High concentrations of math and science skills are needed,” said Philip LaRocque, executive director of New York’s state builders association. “Many people who start out in the trades go on to own and manage their own businesses,” he added.

For more information, e-mail John Shortt at HBI, or call him at 800-795-7955 x8924.

Generator Provides Back-Up for Storm Electric Outages

Schneider Electric and its Square D brand of residential products were included in two recent episodes of the syndicated “Bob Vila Home Again” television program featuring efforts to rebuild a home in Punta Gorda, Fla. that was completely destroyed last year by Hurricane Charley.

A Square D generator panel was among the products featured when Vila worked with the Federal Alliance for Safe Homes FLASH) to rebuild the home using current technology and products specifically suited for potential hurricane areas, like storm-ready doors and fiberglass wallboard.

The Square D generator panel enables home owners to quickly and easily switch to generator power in the event of a utility outage. It also provides owners with the flexibility of choosing which applications in their home are supported by their back-up power source and to adjust these applications as needs change throughout the day.

“During a daytime power outage, you may want to run your air conditioning unit, but when things cool off at night you might want to do some laundry,” said Kim Hansen, Schneider Electric’s national account manager. “You’ve got a limited amount of power with a generator, and the generator panel gives you the ability to pick and choose what’s most important to you at any particular time.”

This feature is solely for educational and informational purposes. Nothing on this page should be construed as policy, an endorsement, warranty or guaranty by the National Association of Home Builders of the featured product or the product manufacturer. The National Association of Home Builders expressly disclaims any responsibility for any damages arising from the use, application or reliance on any information contained on this page.

My Crack Is Bigger Than Your Crack

We are building a new home in Indiana. The slab was recently poured and we have approximately eight cracks over a 1,500-square-foot pad. One crack is possibly a bit over 1/8th of an inch wide and the builder agrees to fix this one with the injection of an epoxy filler. All of the cracks are very long (more than 6 feet), but the remaining cracks are smaller in width, under 1/8th of an inch, but appear bigger than a “hairline.”

What is your opinion on the number of cracks? The largest number of cracks we have seen in any home other than ours is two. Will these cracks continue to pull apart over time, requiring vinyl or carpet replacement or making it difficult to sell the home?

P.S. Our builder seems to think that these cracks will cause no harm in the future.

Just when I thought I’d addressed everything a person wanted to know about concrete slabs on grade, you remind me that I have not. Thank you for your questions, they are good ones.

By the way, if you missed any of my previous columns, I am quite pleased to announce that the first 61 — completely updated and expanded with many new sketches and explanations — are now available in a professionally bound volume entitled “Cracks, Sags, and Dimwits — Lessons to Build On.” It is available in paperback or downloadable.

Now to the issues at hand. As I’ve said before, concrete is at its largest volume the moment it hits the forms. As it cures, water is lost to evaporation and hydration, causing shrinkage. With shrinkage comes cracking. Always. Every time. The trick is not stopping the cracks (you can’t) but rather managing them. Management is usually done via control joints, i.e. shallow sawcuts or tooled lines in the green concrete that provide a nice, neat place for cracking to occur. Since control joints are not mentioned in your e-mail, I’ll assume none was installed.

What is my opinion of the number of cracks? My opinion is that eight random cracks over 1,500 square feet is probably too few, and only two is way too few. What? Yes, here’s why: I specify control joints at no greater spacing than 10 feet in each perpendicular direction, and less if the contractor and owner don’t object. Assuming your 1,500 square feet are arranged in a 30’ x 50’ rectangle, you should have a minimum of four control joints across the long dimension and two across the short. This would result in 15, 10’ x 10’ square sections. If you counted each side of each square as a likely cracking place, that would be 22, 10-foot long cracks.

What about the width of cracks? If the slab did all its cracking in one or two places, I’d expect those cracks to be quite wide — maybe 1/4-inch or more. However, if there were control joints spaced no greater than 10 feet apart, in an ideal world, the cracking would distribute among those joints somewhat evenly such that none would be too large. Concrete almost never behaves ideally, so some cracks will be wider than others, and some cracks may stray from control joints. I would not get too nervous about a 1/8th-inch wide shrinkage crack.

Non-shrinkage cracks. What about cracks not caused by shrinkage? If settlement causes the cracking, now we’re in a whole different ballgame. Most of this article assumes that subgrade (the soil below the slab) is firm and strong. If so, cracks will be caused by shrinkage. If not, cracks can be caused by both shrinkage and vertical movement, aka settlement. In this case, the repair needs to be structural — probably underpinning (my book addresses this in detail).

Repair of cracks. If there is a crack and the contractor says he can repair it with epoxy, be warned, that repair is mostly cosmetic. If the crack was caused by soil settlement, epoxy is like putting a band aid on a broken bone. It won’t do much. Truly fixing a settlement problem requires serious structural measures. Epoxy will fill the crack until enough movement accumulates again to reopen it, or start cracking anew elsewhere.

Will cracks continue to pull apart? The answer is that it depends. If the cracks are due to settlement, then, yes, they will continue until a repair is made, or until all the settlement has played out of the soil below. How long is that? If the soils are clayey, not in your lifetime. If the soils are sandy, the settlement may stabilize after a few years, say two or three.

If the cracks are due to shrinkage only, they will continue until the concrete loses most of its water to hydration (curing). For all practical purposes, this takes less than a year, about 75% occurring within the first month — if the weather isn’t too cold. So installing carpet or vinyl flooring after a month should be fine. I might wait two or three months to put down tile, however, particularly if the slab was poured in the winter when curing takes longer.

To summarize, if I were you, I’d be happy to have a few more cracks than your neighbor. Hopefully, that way they’ll be narrower. And cracks, whether in a concrete slab or on someone’s anatomy, are better narrower.

Tim Garrison of ConstructionCalc.com, is a professional engineer, author, and software producer for the building industry. Check out his new book, “Cracks, Sags, and Dimwits,” available at www.lulu.com.

NAHB Programs on HGTV & DIY This Week

The NAHB Production Group is a full-service, self-contained, media production unit creating programming for cable television, broadcast television, non-profit, museum and corporate clients. Productions range from magazine format shows for general audiences to museum-installation videos for specialized use.

The production group includes award winning journalists, writers and photographers with experience in broadcast, documentary and corporate television.

Subscribe Your Employees to Nation’s Building News — and Earn a Chance to Win Digital Camera

Subscribe your employees to Nation’s Building News Online. It’s free, easy and NAHB members who sign up three or more employees will be entered into the "Make Your Business Click" contest to win a digital camera. To learn more or sign up your employees, click here.

Make your connection to the latest housing industry news and information with www.nahb.org — the official public and members-only Web site of NAHB.

Endowment Funds California In-Fill Development Survey

The survey was funded with a $5,000 grant from the National Housing Endowment, the philanthropic arm of NAHB, through its Challenge/Build/Grow Initiative.

The survey focused on the status of the Southern Califormia cities’ general plans and their development interests and issues. Survey results indicated that:

The cities also were surveyed to determine the various strategies they employed for transit-oriented and mixed-use development, site identification for affordable and low- to moderate-income housing, land-use issues, city zoning mechanisms and affordable housing discussions.

The research suggested that land use and zoning policies will focus equally on urban and suburban growth in the future. In addition:

For more information, e-mail Pamela Hemann, executive director of the Los Angeles County East Chapter of the Building Industry Association of Southern California.

NAHB Members, Board to Meet in Orlando at Builders' Show

Notice of Annual Meeting of
the Members of the
National Association of Home Builders

The annual meeting of members of the National Association of Home Builders will take place on Thursday, Jan. 12, 2006 in the Valencia A-C Rooms, Level 4 at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Fla., for the purpose of electing directors and state representatives, and other matters as may come before the meeting.

The following schedule of events is a partial listing provided as a notice for the upcoming NAHB Board of Directors Meeting to be held at the International Builders’ Show (IBS) in Orlando from Jan. 8-14. The board meeting will be held at the Orange County Convention Center in the Valencia A-C Rooms on Thursday, Jan. 12 from 1:00 – 5:00 p.m. and Friday, Jan. 13 from 8:00 a.m. – noon.

The exact times and places of the scheduled meetings below will be listed in the program for the IBS.

Subcommittees, Task Forces, and Working Groups
2005 National Vice Presidents
2005 State Representatives
2005 Executive Board Meeting

Committees and Councils Meetings
Past Presidents’ Council
National Housing Center Board of Governors
2005/2006 National Vice Presidents

Committees and Councils Meetings
Budget & Finance Committee
Resolutions Committee
2006 Executive Board Orientation

Joint 2005 Executive Board, Budget & Resolutions Committee
The Featured Event: Dennis Prager
2005 Board of Directors Meeting/Annual Meeting of the Members
Spike Party & Directors Reception

Learn How to Boost Your Association Membership

Learn how to boost your home builders association membership at the membership learning lab held at the 2006 International Builders’ Show in Orlando, Fla.

The lab will focus on creating and communicating value and be held 8:00-10:00 a.m. Thursday, Jan. 12.

Pre-registration is required. Seats are limited. Only one seat per home builders association is available.

E-mail membership@nahb.com with your contact details. Put “I’m there!” in the subject line.

Your NAHB Membership Can Take You for a Great Ride

NAHB’s exclusive automotive partner, General Motors, offers eligible NAHB members preferred supplier pricing through Jan. 3. Most 2005 and 2006 model year vehicles from Chevrolet, Pontiac, Buick, Cadillac, GMC, Saturn, HUMMER and Saab are included. See www.gmfleet.com/nahb for complete details.

In addition, members can realize the benefits of other offers such as eligible customer cash and the GM Business Choice Program — stacking up to an even better value.

The 2006 GM Business Choice program is available to qualified commercial customers requiring the use of work-type vehicles for daily business operations. Available on most Chevy and GMC commercial trucks and vans, Business Choice allows customers to the option that works best for them:

Complete program information is available at Chevrolet and GMC dealerships, or visit www.gmbusinesschoice.com.

For the most up-to-date details on the Member Advantage discount program and all of the participating companies, go to www.nahb.org/ma.

Subscribe Your Employees to Nation’s Building News — and Earn a Chance to Win Digital Camera

Make your connection to the latest housing industry news and information with www.nahb.org — the official public and members-only Web site of NAHB.

Save More With BuilderBooks.com Rewards

BuilderBooks.com is offering it's first-ever Rewards program to provide privileges, savings and rewards to its loyal customers.

Launched at the 2005 International Builders’ Show, the program is available for a $9.95 annual fee.

Join the Rewards program today and save on the very books and services that build your business. Click here to start saving.

Subscribe Your Employees to Nation’s Building News — and Earn a Chance to Win Digital Camera

Make your connection to the latest housing industry news and information with www.nahb.org — the official public and members-only Web site of NAHB.

Calendar of Events

Subscribe Your Employees to Nation’s Building News — and Earn a Chance to Win Digital Camera

Make your connection to the latest housing industry news and information with www.nahb.org — the official public and members-only Web site of NAHB.

Nation's Building News Online: December 5, 2005

Public Strongly Backs Current Housing Tax Incentives

EPA Cracking Down on Storm Water Permit Enforcement

Subscribe Your Employees — You Could Win a Digital Camera

Condo Crash Coming

Help Wanted; So Is Housing

Saying Yes to Housing

Moving In and Moving On; Washington Area Is a ‘Funnel’

Lenders Push the Envelope to Get More Business Amid Higher Interest Rates

Home Builders Finding New Focus

Record October Sales May Overstate Market Strength

Housing Affordability Slumps to Record Low in Third Quarter

Single-Family Conforming Loan Limit to Rise to $417,000

Commerce Department Agrees Canadian Lumber Unsubsidized

Eye on the Economy

Builder's Tip: The Best Place to Put Smoke Detectors

Why Owners Actually Sell Their Companies to Employees

Manually Lifted Balloon Framed Walls Present Hazards

Porter-Cable Circular Saws Recalled for Repairs

Focus Group to Address Section 8 Vouchers in Assisted Living

Rentals the Weak Side of Third-Quarter Remodeling Market

Remodelers Needed for Hurricane Relief

Awards Recognize Systems-Built Marketing and Design

When, How Crucial to Teaching Home Owner Maintenance

Construction Managers Key to Customer Satisfaction

NAHB Designations Give Members a Competitive Edge

Education Calendar

Green Building Awards Deadline Approaches

NCBC Offers Discounted Rates to New Members — Till Dec. 15

Finalists Selected for EVHA Energy Efficiency Awards

NAHB Brief Seeks Clarification of ‘Navigable Waters’

Anti-Pollution Plans Key to Avoiding Storm Water Fines

Hurricanes and $22.6 Million Settlement Put Focus on Mold

Software Forums to Show How to Boost Profits

Educational Resources Focus on Building With Concrete

HBAs Receive Grants to Set Up Training Sites

Generator Provides Back-Up for Storm Electric Outages

My Crack Is Bigger Than Your Crack

NAHB Programs on HGTV & DIY This Week

Endowment Funds California In-Fill Development Survey

NAHB Members, Board to Meet in Orlando at Builders' Show

Learn How to Boost Your Association Membership

Your NAHB Membership Can Take You for a Great Ride

Save More With BuilderBooks.com Rewards

Calendar of Events