NBN Online for the week of February 1, 2010

(Plain Text Version) for full graphical version, click here.

In This Issue:

Front Page
Builders Looking to Repair Broken Home Finance System
High Unemployment Levels Put Housing on Slow Growth Track
Builders Need to Act Fast on Home Buyer Tax Credit
Nation's Building News Begins Biweekly Publication
Coast to Coast
Lifelines Dry Up for Mortgage Lending
Politics & Government
Builders Continue to Battle Unfair Health Care Bill Provision
Economics & Finance
New-Home Sales Decline in November, Inventories Slim
Housing Starts Down in December, But Permits Rise
Economy, Foreclosures Take Toll on Builder Confidence
Returning Home Buyers Show a Shift in Preferences
FHA Announces Tighter Lending Requirements
IRS Updates Form 5405 for Home Buyer Tax Credit
Useful Links to Monitor Economic and Housing Trends
Tips
Builders’ Tip: Protecting Stairs During Drywall Installation
builders show
Crowds at IBS More Upbeat About Prospects for 2010
50Plus Housing
Social Activities Not at the Top of 55+ Home Buyer Wish List
It’s Not Easy Getting a Handle on What 55+ Home Buyers Want
Sales
NAHB Names Gold Award Winners of The Nationals
‘Think Sold!’ Provides the Tools to Sell Homes, Even in a Slow Market
Multifamily
Research Center Certifies First Green Multifamily Buildings
Remodelers
Remodeling Poised to Enter Early Phase of Recovery
Apply for NAHB Remodelers Leadership Grant by Friday, Feb. 5
Education
Education Calendar
environment
Remodelers Advised to Apply Now for Lead Certification
Green Building
Appraisals Impeding Wider Use of Green Products
Builders See Cost Savings Move Green Into the Mainstream
Builder Rebate Program Helps Owners Weatherize Homes
Green Building Awards Deadline Is Feb. 3
Greening Missouri Homes Conference Set for March 16-17
home builders institute
Construction Management Contest Winners Announced
Building Products
Pella to Hold 30 ‘ProExpo’ Events Around the Country
TV
NAHB-Produced Programs on the DIY Network
Endowment
Education Scholarship Fund Created to Honor Joe Robson
Evans Scholarship Fund Awards $41,000 to 13 Students
Association News
Nation’s Home Builders Elect Leadership for 2010
Hall of Fame Builder F. Coin Campbell, Jr. Dies at 85
Let Love Bloom This Valentine’s Day With FTD 20% Discount
FedEx Offers Big Savings on Shipping
Members, Take Advantage of Special Offers From Hertz
Speakers Wanted for 2011 International Builders’ Show
Calendar of Events
NAHB Career Center

NAHB-Produced Programs on the DIY Network

The NAHB Production Group produces weekly television shows for consumers on the DIY network. The following is the latest lineup:

"Indoors Out" on DIY

Episode: "Outdoor Family Room"

• Feb. 5, 11:00 a.m. EDT

 

Hosts Dean Marsico and Derek Stearns help move a Georgian family's playtime outside with a spacious outdoor family room. Before the outdoor space was created, the Hames family had to rearrange the furniture in their spatially-challenged living room in order to play games and kick back. To solve the problem, Dean and Derek transform their large, but muddy, backyard with a grand staircase that leads into a new, spacious paver patio. They add a stone-accented fireplace at one end of the room, a handmade pine arbor at the other and put in lots of accents and comfortable seating in between. With all of this outdoor comfort, the family will never want to go back inside.

Episode: "Swedish Sauna"

• Feb. 5, 11:30 a.m. EST

 

Hosts Dean Marsico and Derek Stearns help a Swedish expat couple adjust to American life with a one-of-a-kind outdoor spa. Mats and Tanja had no place to celebrate their shared love of European saunas and spas in their tiny 1920s house. So Dean and Derek surprise the couple with a European-meets-American style room complete with an easy-to-assemble infrared sauna, gorgeous hot tub and a do-it-yourself outdoor shower. Beautiful bluestone and Tennessee crab orchard stone create the floor and outdoor cedar furniture completes the look.

Episode: "Outdoor Cigar Room"

• Feb. 8, 11:00 a.m. EST

 

Buddy LaPointe enjoys smoking cigars but his wife Sue doesn't allow him to enjoy them inside, so hosts Dean Marsico and Derek Stearns give Buddy a smoking lounge outside his patio doors. They create a two-layered deck with one area for eating and another for lounging. They also make the yard’s boring chimney a focal point with a salvaged chestnut beam for a mangle and an antique weather-proofed cabinet for cigars. From colors to furniture to stogies, this episode has everything needed to create a one-of-a-kind outdoor cigar room.

Episode: "Outdoor Game Room"

• Feb. 8, 11:30 a.m. EST

 

With all four kids living near by, Colleen's house frequently serves as an honorary student union for children and friends alike. Because Colleen is running out of space inside her home to accomodate everyone, hosts Dean Marsico and Derek Stearns step in to expand her outdoor space. For this outdoor game room, they get rid of the yard's crumbling blacktop and put in a beautiful dining deck, a cobbled patio and fireplace, storage space and a special weatherproof pool table.

Episode: "Outdoor Kitchen"

• Feb. 12, 11:00 a.m. EST

 

Ellie and Shawn have a small, cramped kitchen, so hosts Dean Marsico and Derek Stearns help move the family's kitchen time outside where they have a perfect spot to expand their tiny kitchen. With 42 tons of dirt, Dean and Derek level off a hill, add two large patios, four shade trees and one cool kitchen unit complete with a copper pizza oven and copper-colored concrete countertops.

HGTV Seeking ‘Dream Home’ Builder/Architect Teams

HGTV is seeking developers, builders and architects to create the 2010 HGTV Dream Home, the grand prize in the network's annual sweepstakes. To learn more, click here.

About the NAHB Production Group

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.


 

Sponsored by
NAHB

 
 
> Investment group must sell planned subdivision
> Rolling Hills and Creek Frontage/Views!
> Auction Time: February 23rd at Noon!
 
 

Sponsored by
NAHB

 
 
> Let Love Bloom With an FTD 20% Discount in February
> FedEx Offers Big Savings on Shipping
> Members, Take Advantage of Special Hertz Offers