The Board is Boston Bound — 2003 Fall Board
The NAHB Fall Board of Directors Meeting is just around the corner. Don't miss your opportunity to network with your peers, participate in Women's Council working groups and workshops, and attend valuable educational programs.

The NAHB Fall Board of Directors Meeting and Women's Council Board of Trustees Meeting will be held in Boston, MA, September 17-21, 2003. Women's Council meetings will take place in the Westin Hotel Copley Place. Be sure to plan now to attend the Women’s Council meetings and events. The Women's Council Fall Board Schedule is listed below. For additional information or to register online click here.

Women's Council
Fall Board Schedule

Mid-Year Outlook For Housing Is Good News For Nation's Economy

The nation's housing market should continue to provide solid support to the U.S. economy throughout the remainder of 2003 and beyond, and will likely set a new record for sales of new single-family homes this year. NAHB has revised its forecast for 2003 sales of new single-family homes to 985,000 units — about 1% above last year's record-breaking 973,000 units.

For home builders, the early part of this year was complicated by unusually large swings in weather conditions and uncertainties related to the buildup to war with Iraq — yet sales of new homes held near a million-unit annual pace and residential fixed investment accounted for about one-third of total GDP growth in the first quarter. Home sales actually have strengthened in the wake of the war, and are now on track to beat NAHB's previous forecasts and support the economy over the balance of the year.

Two key factors for NAHB's upbeat outlook include the successful passage of President Bush's economic stimulus package, which will strengthen job and income growth in the second half of the year, and the recent cut in interest rates by the Federal Reserve, which will help maintain very favorable interest rates on home mortgages. NAHB estimates that long-term mortgage rates will average 5.3% in the present quarter, then rise slowly to an average of 5.5% in 2003's final quarter. [return to top]

Announcing the Premier Issue of Building Women Magazine

We are very excited to announce the premier issue of BUILDING WOMEN, a 4-color magazine to be printed this month and mailed to all Women’s Council members the first week of August. This magazine supersedes the black and white Networker newsletter that has been in existence for eight years. Women’s Council Chairman, Lee Terry and Women’s Council staff have been working diligently to bring you the only magazine specifically targeted toward women in the building industry.

We are sure you'll enjoy the lively and compelling editorial assembled for Building Women. Each issue will take an in-depth look at an active woman builder, along with features that reveal the latest trends, present product roundups, highlight the latest technology, and offer forecasts for the future. Add to that a variety of interesting columns on career building, family businesses, balancing work and play, business management tips, and the latest Women’s Council news and programs.

Act Fast and Save — 2004 International Builders' Show

Make your plans now to attend The 2004 International Builders’ Show®, the biggest home building industry event of the year. See thousands of new products and technologies from 1,400 of America’s foremost suppliers. Learn the latest on design and construction, land development, housing finance options, business management, and more from a selection of more than 200 educational seminars.

If you would like to receive news throughout the coming months about The 2004 International Builders’ Show, please click here. [return to top]

Single and Looking
The National Association of Realtors® reports that single women purchase homes more often than unwed men; and experts have found that the housing preferences of both groups differ based on their gender, finances, lifestyles and personalities. While men desire large garages and living spaces to accommodate cars, sports equipment and other space-hogging items, women want small, cozy places. As far as the purchase itself, men typically are long-term renters and negotiators; while women would rather own their own place. Women also tend to consider all of the options before them and to share more information with their agent than men. Prestige is the top priority among men in terms of location, while women are more concerned with security and socialization. Men prefer comfortable living spaces with stainless steel appliances, granite countertops and hardwood floors; focus on the square footage; consider the investment potential of homeownership; and desire high-speed Internet access, high-tech wiring and shared laundry facilities to gather with their neighbors. Women, meanwhile, like lots of windows, top-notch appliances and plenty of light; rooms large enough for their furnishings; and fancy bathrooms and walk-in closets. e.Realty.com Market Director Elio Buoni adds that men are more likely to sell their home when they forge a long-term relationship than women, who seek security in homeownership.

This story is provided by Infomation, Inc. For legal information regarding copyrights to these stories click here. [return to top]

Building Homes of Our Own Reaches 1.5 Million, Wins National PR Award

The middle school CD-ROM program Building Homes of Our Own has now reached 1.5 million students, teachers and parents nationwide who have been exposed to our award-winning education program. This interactive, fun learning tool also boasts a positive message about the home building industry and the diverse professions that make our neighborhoods a reality.

For more information, contact Kym Kilbourne at kkilbourne@nahb.com or call her at 800-368-5242 x8447. Building Homes of Our Own outreach tools are available on www.nahb.org in the new “PR Tools” area of “HBA Resources”. Members and teachers can order one free copy of the educational CD-ROM game from www.homesofourown.org. [return to top]

Builders Offering Money to Schools
In Durham County, NC, Larry Thomas and R.L. Hovarth Associates Inc. are among the home builders offering to make monetary donations to the local school system as a way to help mitigate school overcrowding resulting from their projects. County attorney Chuck Kitchen sees no problem with such agreements, provided that commissioners are not illegally approving rezoning requests based on money. The county has proposed a bill that would require builders to pay $2,500 in impact fees for each single-family home and $1,500 for multifamily buildings, but challenges from local builders and real estate agents have kept the legislation from making it out of the General Assembly. According to the Homebuilders Association of Durham and Orange Counties, the impact fees would boost home prices by as much as $3,000 and unfairly saddle new-home buyers with the financial burdens of development. Though officials commend developers for trying to resolve the overcrowding issue, they believe a standard fee that encompasses all projects is necessary. The county scrapped plans to implement impact fees two years ago because it would have cost $750,000 annually to reimburse developers of low-cost units, but the current plan would create a separate policy for affordable housing.

This story is provided by Infomation, Inc. For legal information regarding copyrights to these stories click here. [return to top]

Nominate Your Community Service Project for Home Builders Care Award
The National Housing Endowment and NAHB have joined once again to award the National Housing Endowment/Home Builders Care Project of the Year Award to recognize an outstanding home builders association or member community service project. Women's Council members may submit project entries in conjunction with their HBA by October 15, 2003 to ensure it is considered for this prestigious national award.

2003 marks the final year for this award program that honors our industry’s commitment to the community and exemplifies the spirit of Home Builders Care. The winner will be recognized at the 2004 International Builders’ Show, awarded a plaque and given $5,000 to be donated to a charity of the winner’s choice. The National Housing Endowment Board of Trustees will select the 2003 winner at its December meeting.

Download additional entry guidelines and the official entry form from the Public Relations Resources section of the Public Affairs Committee pages on the NAHB Web site.

Projects will be evaluated based on whether they provided a needed service in the community; effectively promoted the goal of providing safe, decent, affordable housing; succeeded in motivating NAHB members or company staff to participate; had a positive impact on the beneficiaries; was creative; met project goals; and whether it is sustainable in subsequent years. To be considered, projects must have been started, in progress or completed between January 1 and October 15, 2003.

Contact Kimberly Wilbur or Kym Kilbourne in NAHB Public Affairs with questions about the award or guidelines at 800-368-5242, ext. 8061.

Getting a Grip on Your Numbers
Why set budgets? Because budgets give you a clearer focus on the potential of your business and provide you with the roadmap to reaching your goals.

A budget is defined as a formal expression of plans, goals, and your objectives for you, your business and your employees over a very specific period of time. Your budget is your tool that provides targets and direction.Your budget also provides you with control over the immediate and helps you to master the financial aspects of the company and work before they become a problem. With a budget, you can focus on evaluating alternative actions before decisions are actually implemented.

Budgets not only give you control, but provide a means of measurement, coordination, and good decision-making.

Developing good budgets takes time, but the investment of your time in developing realistic budgets is what sharpens your budgeting skills. The sharper your skills become, the more certainty you build into the success of your business.

What Budgets Are

Your budget is really your blueprint for your business, very much like the blueprints you use to build your projects. Imagine how lost you would be and the chaos you would find yourself entrapped in, each and every day of building a project without a set of blueprints. You would have no idea of what the owner wanted or how you should proceed.

Not having a budget for your business entangles you in the day-to-day feeding frenzy of disorganization. Your budget is your plan of action and when you develop a plan you now have organization and control over your future.

Your primary objective as a business owner is to have an objective or goal for your business. Your budget is your plan to make sure that you can and will reach those objectives. To achieve this you must consistently follow this Success Power “Profit Building” Tip:

The underlying key to a successful budget or business blueprint is to use realistic and honest projections of expected sales, cost of sales, and overhead.

If you would like to learn more about building Profit Driven Budgets please visit HG & Associates, Inc. at www.hgassociates.com or sign up for our FREE 6-week e-course at www.contractorseducation.com. [return to top]

Builder Bright Idea

Try these tips from the 2002 Custom Builder Symposium:

Thomas Hudgin of Wilmington Quality Associates in Wilmington, NC, believes that the difference between being a boss and a leader often comes down to coaching. He told participants in his seminar, “Powerful Leadership Practices for Today’s Business Environment,” that good coaches:

• Put people relationships first and tasks second.
• Encourage employees’ personal development.
• Set high standards, but urge staff to set their own goals.
• Delegate tasks and resist the temptation to take over when things aren’t going so well.

Do you have a great builder tip to share? E-mail it to us at alarrabee@nahb.com.

The NAHB Custom Builder Symposium is a two-day program full of education and networking opportunities designed exclusively for custom builders by custom builders. The 2003 Symposium will take place November 14-16 at Disney’s Contemporary Resort at Walt Disney World in Orlando. For information, visit the Custom Builder Symposium page on www.nahb.org. [return to top]

PR Tools and Column Service Articles Find New Home On www.nahb.org

With the launch of the new members-only content on www.nahb.org, state and local home builders associations now have easy access to resources to help you manage your council public relations efforts.

Getting to Your Members-Only Content Go to www.nahb.org. Click on the blue “Member Log In” button. Go to the “First Time User” page. Enter you Local HBA and NAHB access numbers. To verify these numbers call 800-368-5242 x0 or email us at login@nahb.org. Create your Username and Password.

Guides to Growing Success

Even if you’ve got only one employee, you’ll want a copy of Job Descriptions for the Home Building Industry, Third Edition. The book contains 40 job descriptions for home building industry employees, plus sample company organization charts, job description forms, electronic documents on CD, and other tools. The price is $26.96 for NAHB members and $29.95 for non-members. Order it online by visiting www.builderbooks.com, or call 800-223-2665.

The PRO Builder: Business Planning features step-by-step exercises that walk you through the process of developing your own business plan. It offers a specialized tool not found anywhere else — an electronic spreadsheet for developing the financial section of your plan. Before you know it, you’ll be well on your way to increased profitability and smoother operations. The price is $22.46 for NAHB members and $24.95 for non-members. Order it online by visiting www.builderbooks.com or call 800-223-2665. [return to top]