Renovations and Technology: Evolving With the Times
Lesley Boyd

Today, few things are as elusive as the new home buyer. The credit crisis nationwide has negatively impacted potential new home buyers’ interest and ability to purchase new homes.  In fact, NAHB recently revealed October statistics that indicated “sales of new homes continued to trend downward, falling by 5.3% for the month and by 40% on a year-over-year basis”.

Where’s the slightly silver lining? According to the National Association of Realtors® (NAR), existing home sales nationwide are up over a year ago and the majority of the buyers are purchasing a primary residence.

Connectivity and audio solutions not currently provided in many existing homes are providing a life raft to builders and electronic systems contractors (ESC) in the form of renovation and retrofit projects. However, the renovation market has become saturated with home builders who need to find alternate sources of income, so it is imperative they do something to differentiate themselves from the competition.

“There has been a bit of a gold rush in the new housing market for the past 12 years. In light of the current market, many of our builder partners are wading into the previously uncharted waters of renovation projects,” said Frank DeFilippis, vice preside of sales and systems design for Link Your House.  “Maybe building a new house isn’t a valid option to the new mix of clients, but they still want the best technology options available.

"Builders who have partnered with an accredited Electronic Systems Contractor have an edge over builders who have not," DeFilippis said. "Together they can provide the highest quality and most diverse technology solutions these customers crave.”

Renovation Technology Trends

“Although there are many technology upgrade options available for existing homes there are two main requests that we receive repeatedly from our renovation and retrofit clients,” he continued. “Lighting control for energy efficiency and distributed audio.”

According to the Remodeling Market Index (RMI), about one-fourth of the respondents indicated a rise in requests for energy-efficient improvements.

A popular upgrade in both new and existing homes, lighting control allows home owners the ability to control the amount of light in a room through the use of dimmers, switches and keypads to control energy consumption. The control allows for more energy savings and also increased ambiance in the space.

Lighting control offers two popular options that do not require any new wires to be installed in the home: power line carrier (PLC) and radio frequency (RF). PLC systems utilize existing power wiring to connect switches, dimmers and other devices together in a control network. RF Systems use radio frequency signals traveling through the air between lighting control devices.

Both systems offer a variety of dimmers, switches, keypads and handheld remote options. (source: Home Lighting Control Alliance.)

Prior to the availability of PLC and RF options, all lighting control upgrades had to be installed with low voltage wiring. Although low voltage wiring is a tried and true option, in existing homes it could prove quite expensive since it requires fishing wires down walls and/or tearing down sheetrock which would result in excessive expenditures.

“Lighting control has been making advancements for many years using power line and wireless technology, thus controlling the cost of installation,” said Peter Hoagland, director of the Home Lighting Control Alliance. “In this economy, more people are staying put, but that doesn’t mean that they are not still investing in their home. Lighting control is one of the most desirable ‘no new wire’ technology options available.”

In terms of multi-room audio, MP3 players have propelled the advancement of the distributed audio industry. Many consumers want to listen to their iPod throughout their homes.

This option used to be incredibly expensive to complete in existing homes because of the use of actual wires. However, companies such as Sonos now offer wireless solutions and include new technologies such as wireless control through an iPhone.

“A good rule of thumb when discussing potential technology options with customers is: do not invent new behaviors," said DeFilippis. "Expand on what they are use to and use learned behaviors to create options that the clients will not only appreciate, but intuitively understand.”

“In terms of distributed audio, everyone knows how to use an iPod and it makes sense to expand that knowledge into listening to music throughout the home,” he noted.

Although many wireless options now exist to keep costs down, DeFilippis warns that the technology is still maturing and sometimes running the wires is actually a better option.

Technology: Why Bother?

Why should you care about new technology advancements? Because the consumers care.

Today’s tech-savvy consumers expect and demand the latest and greatest tech toys, especially in their home. The consumer electronics market has advanced and raised the threshold for reliable, easy-to-use tech toys such as the popular DVRs (TiVo) and iPods that home owners want to incorporate throughout their homes.

It is the joint responsibility of the builder and the ESC to ensure these items are installed in the home correctly and cost-efficiently.

“The builder shouldn’t worry about complex programming, product availability or end-user training,” said DeFilippis. “The Electronic Systems Contractor should take responsibility for selling the value, ensuring ease of use, and explaining the products to the consumer once they are installed.”

Perpetual Business

Now, more than ever, the personal touch is important.

“Get to know your clients,” said DeFilippis. “Find out if they have friends, relatives, or neighbors who are interested in expanding or upgrading their homes. You never know if they might have a vacation home that could use some upgrading. Build trust and you might have a repeat client and future referrals for life.”

According to the Consumer Electronics Association’s 6th Annual State of the Builder Technology Market Study, nearly 90% of builders indicated that the addition of home technologies increased or maintained revenue. Builders who participate in renovations and remodels must offer these technologies to even stay competitive in this market.

Advice for Builders

• Ensure your ESC partners are up-to-date with the latest in technological advancements that you can pass on to your customers.
  
  
• Meet with your Electronic Systems Contractor early and often. If you are creating a new addition to the home or a complete renovation, include the ESC in phase 1. This will cut down later costs for fishing wires, cutting open and redoing walls, plastering and painting.
  
  
• Allow your Electronic Systems Contractor to meet directly with your clients. ESC are the experts in the technology domain and can greatly increase your profit margin by explaining options to them.
  
  
• Differentiate your renovation projects by offering a wide variety of technology options. Even though your customers aren’t purchasing new homes, they still want the best technology options available.
  
  
• Take the time to get to know your clients. The personal touch can help you gain new projects from referrals and the potential for renovations and remodels to vacation or second homes.

Lesley Boyd is a freelance home technology writer, writing on behalf of the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA). CEA’s TechHome Division members represent the entire channel for home control and networking products including integrators, distributors and manufacturers. Lesley offers an objective and unique perspective on up-and-coming technology, applications and integration in the CE arena. For more information, e-mail lesleyaboyd@gmail.com.

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