Some things that happen in Vegas should not stay only in Vegas. They should be known "from California to the New York island, from the redwood forest to the gulf stream waters."
Like, for instance, the rational exuberance pulsating in the Las Vegas Convention Center exhibit hall aisles as 75,000 attendees streamed through the triad 2014 NAHB's International Builders' Show, the Kitchen and Bath Industry Show (KBIS) and the International Window Coverings Expo.
"Builders are telling me, 'I've got problems and I've got to fix them,' and that's a good thing," said a friend in the business, whose meeting count on and off the show floor this year was in the dozens-per-day range. The kinds of "problems" home builders, remodelers, designers, and multifamily developers face have to do with being smart and keeping pace--mostly on cost-vs.-revenue timelines--with demand; drawing entry-level buyers and renters into the housing continuum and out of their parents' homes; navigating a a still-treacherous housing finance and commercial lending landscape; and the ever-perilous puzzle of logistics vs. delight that results in handing over the keys and deed to a new home to a new-home buyer; and, perhaps the biggest barrier of all, finding more good people to work in the business.
The National Association of Home Builders reportsthat
While most home builders continue to see their markets brighten, IBS euphoria was tempered by the remaining headwinds preventing a full recovery. Tight credit conditions, building supply price increases and the limited availability of buildable lots are three obstacles.
Still, the karma, the vibe, the conviction among most of the throng of builders, remodelers, and their partners was like it hasn't been for years.
Which brings me back to my original thought here, things that happen in Vegas that should not stay in Vegas. "Being a man for others," is a cross-cycle, everyday, every moment thing. The Hearthstone BUILDER Humanitarian Award, for instance, and its honoree this year, Shea Homes ceo Bert Selva is proof of that.
Bert Selva's story is testimony to a soul dedicated to what is truly humanitarian, that is "accepting human beings simply for the fact that they are people." The specifics of that story make for drama, for laughter-through-tears, for inspiration and motivation of others.
Bert's story should not stay in Vegas. It should be told and known and proudly felt far and wide, not in the least because that self-same DNA--that sense of gratitude that comes of accepting, helping, being a man or woman for others--is what home builders, remodelers, and entire ecosystem of humanity that is residential construction are and do.
Witness the fact that there to salute Selva and his Shea Homes team on Wednesday morning at the breakfast were past Hearthstone honorees, Bryson Garbett, Mori Hosseini, Thomas Gipson, and Larry Webb.
These gentlemen, and countless among you who've yet to get recognized, are men for all cycles. Whether it's good times or bad, you're there for others.
That, friends, is something that happens in Vegas that should not stay in Vegas.
Learn more about markets featured in this article: Las Vegas, NV.
