Consumer confidence slid 6.2 percent in August, fueled largely by the subprime crisis and its negative impact on stock prices, according to The Conference Board, a New York-based business research group. The news sent the stock market on a slide today, as the Dow Jones industrial average dropped more than 100 points by the late morning. More
For several months, public homebuilders have been telling investors that the market's instability made it all but impossible for them to provide guidance about their businesses for the rest of the year. But after Lennar and KB Home reported huge quarterly revenue declines and net losses late last month, you don't need a crystal ball to see that recovery in the nation's housing market is not in sight, and that many of the industry's leading companies are bailing water under the guise of "managing" their balance sheets. At least one CEO of a major builder believes it is only a matter of time before some of the industry's shakier companies either go out of business or are sold. "There's going to be blood on the streets," predicts Robert Schottenstein, president of Columbus, Ohio-based M/I Homes. More
Mar. 23, 2007: Al Gore's solar-home dream is caught up in red tape; Fannie Mae predicts a 7 percent to 8 percent drop in new-homes sales; and the best home building Web sites trends are announced. BUILDER Online catches you up with the news you might have missed. More
SANTA BARBARA, CALIF. -- David W. Berson, chief economist for Fannie Mae is predicting a drop of 7 percent to 8 percent in new-home sales for the remainder of 2007 but says the worst declines have passed. Berson made his presentation Monday morning to more than 100 home building executives at the Presidential Seminar in Santa Barbara. Berson says he agrees with former Fed chief Alan Greenspan's recent assessment that there is a chance that the nation could go into a recession. More
A variety of indicators suggest that sales of both new and existing homes bottomed out during the fourth quarter of 2006, and the NAHB's forecast shows a gradual recovery of sales volume during 2007. But builders should realize that the standard measures of home sales tell only part of the story about housing demand. Also, standard measures of housing inventory provide an inadequate assessment of the true weight of the current and potential overhang. More
KB HOME, THE INDUSTRY'S FIFTH-largest builder, accepted the retirement of its CEO... More
WINDOW MANUFACTURER Pella has unveiled a new Web site that the company says is designed to help builders, contractors, and other trade professionals increase their profit potential. In addition to the typical product information, the site offers design and installation resources as well as materials to help provide better customer service. More
A ROUTINE ASSESSMENT OF PHOENIX'S sewer system last year revealed several lines within the city's system running at or above 80 percent capacity, the design limit. It will take $60 million over three years to fix the problem lines, says Ray Quay, Phoenix's assistant director of water services. More
SOMETIMES GEOGRAPHY FORCES BUILT-IN LIMITATIONS. That's the case in Anchorage,... More
