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Builders keep tight reign on inventories.Cleaner balance sheets are the result, tidied up considerably by controlling more land under option instead of owning it. Looking back 10 years ago, builders controlled 25 percent of their land off balance sheet.
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Financial snapshots show huge gains.A glance at the top 10 companies? net income reveals a huge jump over 2000. Schuler?s lead in net profits as seen in ?Net Income? chart (below) reflects the boost it received from its purchase of Western Pacific Homes in early 2001 and hints at what D.R. Horton?s...
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Good returns have investors smiling.The top 10 companies, excluding NVR, gave a return of 28.1 percent. The top 10 builders, again excluding NVR, posted an overall average of 33.9 percent, an 8 percent improvement over the previous year.
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By Diane Kittower. Another Atlanta-based builder, John Wieland Homes and Neighborhoods, now makes critical information available electronically that once existed only on paper. At Shea Homes, the paper cut is evident in how the monthly financials are shared.
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EIFS is just one of the products that have cost builders millions over the years. That's why virtually every production builder shares the opinion of Randy Luther, vice president of construction technology for Centex Homes, about new products."
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By Iris Richmond. Jeffrey Prostor, president of Brookfield Homes, likes turning the tables. Photo: Dietrich Metal FramingTaciturn Tiles: This diagram represents the Dietrich Metal Framing floor joists that should keep Centex's homes squeak-free.
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What happens when strategy comes up short and a promising formula needs a re-write.James Pugash, who had worked in the commercial sector, and Richard Werner, who had been running a large thrift program, saw an opportunity to provide financing to builders for residential projects. Benefiting from...
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Aiming for efficiency, visionary builders cut their ties to paper. Despite the advance of computerization, the amount of office paper shipped in the United States increased every year during the past decade -- going from 3.4 million tons in 1991 to 4.9 million tons in 2000, according to the...
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With concern mounting over defect litigation, innovation is taking a backseat to the tried and true. The case, involving the use of external insulation and finishing systems (EIFS), is on appeal in the Virginia courts. EIFS is just one of the products that have cost builders millions over the years.
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Florida developer overcomes water and wildlife issues in Pasco County.With that growth has come increased demand on Pasco's infrastructure, from roads and schools to water and open space, pressures that exploded after the Oakstead property, formerly a cattle farm, was rezoned for development in...
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"What builders are doing with all that money.The question keeps coming up," said Lennar CEO Stuart Miller, surveying the group of investors and analysts from the podium. "With those unenlightening words, Miller succeeded in disappointing a room full of industry watchers who know that Lennar has the...
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For the communication-challenged, plain speaking need not be a lost art.I think, though, they simply fall into the same trap as people in other industries. Any organization that's heavy on bureaucracy is particularly susceptible to muddled language, as are businesses offering technical services...
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Unravel the mystery of marketing's return on investment. Depending on whom you ask, measuring the return on investment (ROI) of a marketing campaign is either a simple statistical process or a quest akin to finding the Holy Grail. He recommends line item budgets for each type of expenditure to...
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Mystery shopping's mission shifts from espionage to training. Mystery shopping, once used to instill fear and to weed out the suspected bad apple, has morphed from an exercise in espionage into an irreplaceable sales training tool. Robert Schottenstein says mystery shopping has helped deliver...
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American Standard has entered the suite arena by introducing a collection of fittings, fixtures, and accessories that are designed to go together and, more significantly, to be displayed together.For its part, Home Depot has also recognized the value of merchandising products in bundles...
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In 2000, the United States experienced the highest percentage of Americans who owned a home, 66 percent -- 69 million people. From an economic standpoint, we employ hundreds of thousands of Americans and help fuel the economy.
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By Iris Richmond. As of March 6, David Rotter, Bernard Rotter, and certain of their family members owned more than 90 percent of the outstanding shares in the company. With the U.S. Commerce Department having issued its final ruling on the 20-year U.S.-Canadian conflict over softwood lumber, the...
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By Iris Richmond. Standard Pacific has avoided infill projects -- until recently. The company is getting its feet wet on its first high-density project to date, Playa Vista, located in West Los Angeles, where it's building condos ranging from $290,000 to $390,000 for 1,000 to 1,750 square feet."
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By Iris Richmond. To fight fraud and promote consumer protection, the Mortgage Banker's Association of America (MBAA) wants to make the finance process more understandable for home buyers. If HUD climbs on board with the ruling it should issue in the next 90 days, reform could be 12 to 24 months...
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By Iris Richmond. In the wake of retail lending losses, the manufactured housing industry has taken another hit. Deep Impact: Conseco's exit leaves a nearly $800 million hole to be filled by other lenders.