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In the suburb of Rocklin, outside of Sacramento, Calif., solar-powered home sales are doubling the sales of standard homes according to San Jose-based SunPower Corp., a solar-electric technology manufacturer. Families who purchase the solar-powered homes are reportedly saving up to $120 a month.
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In 1816, amidst the rolling hills of Southern Indiana, the newly elected President James Monroe established a seminary. Located on a trading route and possessing abundant natural resources ranging from limestone to lumber, the area was ideal for development. Within seven years, it was home to...
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The home building business takes an extraordinary amount of drive and dedication, so it's not surprising that most builders eat, breathe, and sleep housing. But life is composed of so much more than what happens at work, and without the balance of a life well-lived, the challenges of the business...
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In the past, The Corky Mc-Millin Cos. would almost always sell to other builders and developers parcels within its master planned communities that were zoned for attached-home construction. Not anymore.
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Who says compact can't be terrific? With its comforting front porch and shingled dormers, Plan 2 at Acacia looks like something from the set of “Leave It to Beaver.” Cute as it is, though, there's nothing retro about this 2,866-square-foot home, designed by Dahlin Group and part of a collection of...
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When you are fortunate enough to have one of the most breathtaking views in the country, you want to enjoy it as much as possible. That's how architect Denis Henmi's clients felt about the custom home they commissioned in Southern Utah.
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The newest resident in Oakland's Jack London Square neighborhood makes a great first impression. Amid-rise luxury building with 70 condominiums and four live/work units on just under a half acre, it proves that high density and great visual impact aren't mutually exclusive. Almost a full city block...
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The quaint Northern California town of Campbell has a few claims to fame. It's the original home to e-Bay and the birthplace of fruit cocktail (although the latter remains a topic of some dispute). These days it's getting noticed for an expanding light-rail system and a subsequent boom of...
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The most interesting thing about this jewel of a house, situated on a breathtaking lot overlooking the Pacific Ocean, isn't that it's well appointed, or that it's faithful in its homage to Spanish architecture. It's that its luxury is expressed in such an understated, almost soft-spoken way.
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Looking for a sure-fire way to distinguish yourself from all the other builders in a New Urbanist community? Take a cue from Denver-based Infinity Home Collection and its Sky Terrace project at Stapleton, the ambitious re-purposing of 4,700 acres that were once Denver's airport. At build-out...
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Talk about a community that has it all. High Point, Seattle's first neighborhood to merge sustainable design with social conscience, is a 120-acre HUD Hope VI project that replaces, in the words of a Seattle Times editorial, “a hideous old public housing project of barracks-like structures” that...
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With scores of contenders vying for the title, winning a project of the year distinction is no small feat. The judges chose this thoughtfully executed neighborhood because it offers the entire package—good site plan, diverse floor plans, interesting use of materials, and relationship with its...
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Al fresco living spaces and four-car garages are the kinds of goodies one would expect in a large home on a well-endowed parcel, where dirt is no object and the setbacks are generous. Now check this out: a single-family city residence that serves up the same menu on a lot measuring just 40 feet...
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They are greenfields, brownfields, grayfields, and desert outposts. The 44th annual Gold Nugget Awards celebrate Western projects that transcend the norm and reshape the housing landscape as we know it. Don't look now, but the showy castles that dominated housing competitions in the not-so-distant...
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Builders around the country were forced last year to ask what, exactly, market share meant if holding onto it required giving away the farm. Saddled with cancelled contracts and unsold homes, many builders saw their only solution as doing whatever it took to lower their inventories through mortgage...
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AT A TIME WHEN THE HOME building industry is stepping up its efforts to address rising fuel and energy costs by improving the energy efficiency and performance of new homes, the EnergyValue Housing Awards (EVHAs) present an opportunity for environmentally responsible builders to share their best...
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IN MY MARCH 2007 COLUMN (“BEWARE THE VACANT Overhang,”), I talked about serious deficiencies in standard measures of housing inventory and pointed out that comprehensive government information regarding vacant housing units on the market showed development of a historically heavy overhang by the...
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Since its inception more than six decades ago, the NAHB has focused its efforts on a single mission—serving members' needs. Sometimes fulfilling that goal is as simple as answering a telephone call and providing information. At other times—such as during today's difficult housing market—serving...
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- The NAHB calls on Congress to enact legislation to reform and revitalize the FHA's single-family mortgage insurance programs.
- Winners announced for this year's winners of the Pillars of the Industry Awards.
- The NAHB and the Custom Electronic Design & Installation Association partner to...
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- New software help builders focus on the many details of the housing business.
- A Philly-area builder sees results from a business process management tool.
- A construction brokerage reports that 90 percent of new-home warranty claims are preventable when the homeowner does proper maintenance.