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David Pressly Elected NAHB President
North Carolina home builder David L. Pressly, Jr. was elected on Jan. 13 as the 2006 president of the 225,000-member NAHB during the association’s 62nd annual International Builders’ Show in Orlando, Fla.
Pressly is president of Pressly Development Co., Inc. and has more than 25 years of experience in the home building business. He primarily constructs multifamily and light and commercial projects in the Statesville area near Charlotte. The company owns and manages more than 1,000 apartment units.
“Following a record-breaking year, we believe that a cooling process has begun in single-family and condo markets that will lead to a solid, more sustainable level of housing production and sales,” said Pressly. “This should be another good year for our industry.”
In 2006, he added, NAHB will work to ensure that any tax reform proposals set forth by Washington policymakers protect current tax incentives that will spur homeownership and rental housing initiatives. Home builders will also remain actively engaged in the ongoing debate on Capitol Hill over restructuring the government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the Federal Home Loan Banks.
“Most American families enter the middle class through homeownership,” he said. “It’s easy for the Wall Street segment to say there’s too much capital in housing, but they would just deprive families at the lower end of the spectrum the opportunity to build assets — equity in a home that can be used to educate children or pay for healthcare and retirement. It’s NIMBYism at a national level.”
To help the millions of families who cannot afford to live in the communities where they work, Pressly said that another top priority in 2006 will center on continuing efforts to overcome the regulatory barriers that drive up the cost of housing development and homeownership.
Pressly became acquainted with the housing industry when he started working as a real estate appraiser following the completion of his service in the U.S. Army. He was a combat engineer from 1969-72, stationed in Fort Campbell, Ky. with the 101st Airborne Division and then in Germany.
Long active in home builders associations at the local, state and national levels, Pressly was president of the North Carolina Home Builders Association in 1996 and twice served as president of the Iredell County Home Builders Association, which named him its Builder of the Year in 1991. He was inducted into the North Carolina Housing Hall of Fame in 2004.
At the national level, Pressly has chaired numerous NAHB committees, and he is an NAHB life director and member of the Executive Board. In 1994, Pressly served as a national representative, and in 1998-99, he was the NAHB national vice president representing Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina.
To help younger builders who are entering the field to ensure success, Pressly says it is more important than ever for those starting out to join their local home builders association. “HBAs provide a vital link to the technological, regulatory and other information needed to prosper. My association membership at local, state and national is an invaluable asset to my building business.”
Actively involved in a wide range of community activities and services, Pressly was elected to the Statesville City Council in 1981 and was the mayor of Statesville in 1983. He served on the board of directors of the Preservation Foundation of North Carolina from 1989 to 1995. In 1979, he was named the Realtor® of the Year by the Statesville Realtors®.
Pressly and his wife, Tammy, have two sons, Lowry and James.
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