AND YOU THOUGHT YOU WERE HAVING A BAD DAY!

NATIONWIDE HOMES BACK FROM THE BRINK

Nationwide Custom Homes’ production is up 50 percent since March, company officials said.

If that trend continues, the company’s goal is to recall workers and/or fill about 75 positions next year at the company’s Martinsville division, according to Nationwide President Andy Miller.

The company already has recalled more than 20 of the 100 workers who were laid off in 2008 and filled six positions since June of this year, Rakes said. The Martinsville division has 206 employees, he added.

The company credits a lot of the upturn to the their new Mainstreet Collection of smaller homes that feature a more straight forward design that can be easily modified by first time home buyers and baby boomers.

Nationwide Homes, a division of Palm Harbor Homes, has more than 325 authorized builders in 16 Mid-Atlantic, Southern and Gulf Region states and added 32 new builders since March of this year.

TRACT BUILDERS BUYING LAND AGAIN

After being deep in red ink for the last few years and being forced to sell entire tracts of land to investors, the big home builders are back in the hunt for land. 

This summer, Ryland bought land or signed option contracts to do so in several markets, including Indianapolis, Atlanta, Houston, Las Vegas and Baltimore.

"We are pursuing more deals than at any time in the past several years," said CEO Larry Nicholson.

But don’t think they are buying vacant land.  Almost all the land they are seeking has already been developed into lots with all utilities in place.  The most sought after land is in the Southwest, Mid Atlantic and Florida areas.

 Let’s hope they’re right this time!!!

GEMCRAFT HOMES FILES BANKRUPTCY

Baltimore-based builder Gemcraft Homes filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection Monday "because of the economic and market conditions existing in the land development and homebuilding industry," the company said.

Gemcraft is one of the largest homebuilders in the country, according to the statement. Since 1996, it has completed 40 developments across five states.

Gemcraft president Bill Luther said he expected to have $37 million in new financing from existing lenders and "a related party."

The company was forced into restructuring due to the downturn in the construction and real estate markets and that the business would operate normally during the bankruptcy.

THIS IS YOUR COMPETITOR

Here is one of the most honest commercials for homes that I’ve ever seen.  ENJOY!

5 REASONS FOR BUSINESS FAILURE

Many, many years ago my mom and dad told me not to play with matches.  So guess what I did….I almost burned our house down!  I was only 6 at the time but a house destroyed by fire is still gone no matter what the age of the little arsonist.  Thank God I was able to put it out quickly because my dad also had shown me where the fire extinguisher was and how to use it!

A lot of small home builders are just like that when it comes to starting and running their business.  They know what they have to do to build a house but they don’t know the danger signs of business failure .  So here are 5 very important things that will lead to business failure.

1.   Failure to build a Team.  You probably have an accountant and a lawyer you could to talk to about keeping your business on the straight and narrow but I’ll bet you don’t call them very often.  That’s a huge mistake.  They are invaluable to your success. 

Other people to add to your team include your modular factory salesperson and the management team at the plant.  If they know that you are on their side, they will bend over backwards to help you.  Get yourself a website builder and someone to help you with marketing.  You can’t do it all yourself.

2.    Failure to Establish a Niche.  Sure, you’ll build anything for anybody, anywhere and anytime, but is that a niche?  If you are hunting a deer, you don’t walk around aimlessly with a shotgun making noise and shooting wildly!  No!  You quietly find a spot before dawn along a path that you know deer travel and wait until you see your target.  Most of the time it is a distance away so you use your rifle and scope to bring it down. 

The same thing has to happen in your business.  Find a target market, find a place that they frequent, stake it out and pick them off as they get near.  If your niche is empty nesters, set up a booth at senior expos, for first time home buyers, push the Tax Credit advantage of your affordable homes, etc.  

3.    Failure to be Unique.  Why should your prospects buy from you and not your competition?  Evaluate your business for what makes it unique and attractive for your customers. Summarize your key selling points that make your product or service a 'must have' for your clients.

Prepare a very brief and easy to read checklist of things that you do that your competitors don’t.  Green and Eco are two buzzwords that are great for in this list.

4.   Failure to be Organized.  You must have  business and marketing plans.  First you need to have a vision for your business. What are your business goals?  How are you going to achieve those goals?  What are you going to sell? 

Second, you need to plan your time. If you are a disorganized mess, with to do lists on scrap paper all over your desk, it’s time to get a planner and use it. Your business needs your guidance, if you can not manage your time, how will you manage your business?

5.    Failure to Market your Business.  Marketing will make or break your business.  There are hundreds of thousands of web sites, you have to continually promote your site to let people know you exist. If people do not know your site is out there they are certainly not going to find it by chance.

If you have a model home, marketing while important, is not as critical to your success. Location, on the other hand is crucial. If you have a good location where consumers naturally will see your model home, this in effect does a lot of your marketing for you.

COACHMAN BECOMES ALL-AMERICAN GROUP

Here is a press release I received from the new All-American Group.

Elkhart, Ind. - Coachmen Industries board of directors approved a name change from Coachmen Industries Inc. to All American Group.

“All American”® means the best in the game, and that is the standard by which we intend to measure ourselves,” said Rick Lavers, President and Chief Executive Officer. “All American is already the preeminent brand name in the modular housing industry, synonymous with best in class quality. It lends itself well to our growing specialty vehicle business, and also helps express the pride our employees have in our country. We believe that is particularly appropriate as we begin to emerge from these troubled economic times. It is a great brand for all of our businesses.”

With the name change comes a new logo, website (www.allamericangroupinc.com) and corporate identity. “Although we have a long history under the Coachmen name, most of our potential customers associate that name with our former recreational vehicle business which was sold to Forest River in December of 2008”, said Bill Martin, Director of Marketing. “The Coachmen brand does not relate to our housing customers, who often do not even realize that Coachmen and All American have had any connection. As we grow our core housing business, it is in our best interest to avoid brand confusion and focus our resources on the ‘All American’ name.”

The tightly focused mission of All American Group is to continue leading the way in environmentally friendly building practices and “Bringing Green Mainstream.”™ The butterfly in our new logo symbolizes our commitment to sustainable building practices, a commitment that is evidenced by the Smart Home on display at the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago, the Living Zero Energy Tour home currently touring the nation under the direction of the United States Department of Energy, and the recent completion of the near net zero energy homes for the Paradigm Project for the Boulder County Housing Authority in Colorado. Every home in the All American Group collection is available with an Energy Savers Package that can save homebuyers up to 50 percent on their energy bills. In addition to these achievements, All American has built well over 1 million square feet of LEED Silver buildings for the United States Army.

In its specialty vehicle division, the ARBOC Spirit of Mobility™ bus built in Middlebury, Indiana, is the first low-floor mid-size bus to provide easy entry without the need for steps or cumbersome wheelchair lifts, and without the use of a drop box in the driveline. Mobility challenged passengers enter through the same door as other passengers by an easily deployed ramp. The Butterfly is also emblematic of the unique ARBOC free-access interior design so important both to the convenience of wheelchair passengers, and to reduced time of operation, which directly results in fuel savings. For increased fuel efficiency, a mild hybrid engine is also available. The hybrid system incorporates an automatic engine start and stop feature that provides 5 to 8 percent fuel savings per year, with a corresponding reduction of greenhouse gasses of about one and a half tons.

While the name change must be put out to a shareholder vote pursuant to applicable corporate law, the Company intends to place a proposal seeking that approval on the ballot for its 2010 Annual Meeting, scheduled for May. In the meantime, the Company will immediately begin operating under the assumed name, “All American Group”.

All American Group is a premier builder of systems-built homes, and large scale residential construction projects. Through a joint venture with ARBOC Mobility, All American Group, Inc. also manufactures a full line of ADA-accessible buses.

All American Group includes All American Homes®, LLC and Mod-U-Kraf®, LLC, which combined are one of the nation's largest builders of systems-built residential homes. Models range from single-story ranches to spacious two-story colonials to beautifully rustic log homes, under the Ameri-Log® brand. A line of solar homes that can generate low to zero energy bills is available under the Solar Village® brand. All American Building Systems®, LLC, builds large scale projects such as apartments, condominiums, dormitories, hotels, military and student housing. The Company’s construction facilities are located in Colorado, Indiana, Iowa, North Carolina and Virginia.

The All American Specialty Vehicles™ division manufactures a full line of ADA accessible buses under the Spirit of Mobility™ brand name. These buses range from 21 to 28 feet in length, and are available in both gas and diesel engine configurations. This bus line represents a value breakthrough in low-floor bus technology, providing premium accessibility features at prices significantly below any other low-floor buses available today. The bus manufacturing facilities are located in Middlebury, Indiana.

A publicly held company, All American Group’s stock is traded over the counter as ticker symbol COHM.

Source: All American Group

THE “SOY” HOUSE IS COMING

Ontario, Canada soybean farmers are getting into the “Green” building business.  They recently partnered with Quality Engineered Homes of Canada and Habitat for Humanity to build a house showcasing as many soy products as possible.

Everything from No-VOC paints and varnishes, adhesives, household insulation, kitchen cabinets, carpet backing, bathroom fixtures, sofas, mattresses, bedding, clothing, food, candles, soaps, and cosmetics, feature soy.

"The use of soy as a renewable alternative to petrochemicals enables the development of a wide array of greener, eco-friendly products," said Dale Petrie, Director of Strategic Development and Innovation, Grain Farmers of Ontario.

Soybeans are uniquely able to be separated into two distinct and equally useful parts. When crushed, 80 per cent of the bean becomes high protein soy meal, which is used for human and animal consumption, while the remaining 20 per cent becomes soy oil, which can be used as bio-fuels and as a sustainable replacement to petroleum oil in a myriad of applications.

"One hundred per cent of the soybean is used every time, making the commercial use of soybeans an innovative, Made-In-Ontario solution. From the farm right through the value chain, soybeans support Ontario's emerging bio-economy," continues Petrie.

Now the only problem appears to be how to keep the local cows from eating their house!

FEDS ADD ANOTHER $6,500 TAX CREDIT

Just when things looked like the $8,000 First Time Home Buyers Tax Credit would expire, the Fed passed a bill to extend it beyond the November 30th deadline. Surprise, Surprise!!!

What you might not have heard is that anyone that has owned their home for 5 years or longer are now eligible for a $6,500 Tax Credit!

Now that leaves only two groups without a Tax Credit.  Homeowners that have owned their homes longer than 2 years but less than 5 years and renters.

As long as the Democrats have control of our money, you can bet that both of these groups will get a tax Credit soon.  I suggest that the short term home owners get $7,250 and renters get $1,200 Tax Credits.  That should just about drive our country into bankruptcy but who cares as long as every possible group of people (that vote) are addressed.

Enough said.

CHAMPION HOMES STILL ALIVE – FOR NOW

Champion Enterprises got a little good news on October 13th.

“On October 13, the Champion Enterprises announced that its creditors agreed to forgo taking action following the failure of the Company to make certain payments. The Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) reveal that its lenders will not accelerate the maturity of loan agreement outstanding, which called for an installment of $3.4 million comprised of principal, interest and fees that the Company did not pay.” 

PALM HARBOR ANNOUCES 2ND QTR RESULTS

Palm Harbor just released their Fiscal 2010 2^nd quarter numbers and like the rest of the industry, it’s down.

Net sales for the second quarter were $74.8 million compared to $110.7 last year. They also reported an operating loss of $6.6 million compared to $4.4 million during the same period last year. But the real downturn showed up in the first 6 months of fiscal 2010. Sales dropped to $157.2 million this year from $240.7 million last year.

Trying to put a good face on the news, Larry Keener, chairman and CEO of Palm Harbor said, "Our results for the second quarter reflect the ongoing challenges facing the overall housing industry. Revenues have clearly been affected by constrained demand for factory-built housing products resulting from more restrictive financing environment and an over-supply of discounted site-built homes.”

But the excuse that they’re just like the rest of the industry runs cold when you learn that their HUD code housing is 43.2% from last year and their Modular home sales are down a whopping 50.4%.

If they are having problems, what do you think is happening at the other big manufacturers?

NEW HOME SALES DROP IN SEPTEMBER

“It is the first decline since March. Sales in September were off 7.8 percent from a year ago. Despite the surprising decline, the market is up 22 percent from the bottom in January, though down more than 70 percent from the peak in July 2005.

The Commerce Department said Wednesday that sales fell 3.6 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 402,000 from a downwardly revised 417,000 in August.” from MSNBC on 10/28/09

The blame for this drop is the $8,000 tax credit! Buyers are not sure they can close by November 30th even though they have signed contracts with their builder.

WHY BUILDERS EAT HERE

JUMPING ON THE INTERNET BANDWAGON

Unless you live in a cave, you’ve had to notice that newspaper sales have been dropping faster than the housing industry!  They are losing sales to Internet news, Facebook, Myspace, Blogs, etc and it’s having an impact on the way we have to market our homes.

Here are some ideas whose time has arrived:

WEBSITE.  If you don’t have a website, get one now!!!  And don’t spare the expense (you have to stay within your budget however).  A cheap website will always look cheap. Remember leisure suits?  If you already have one, start looking at your competitors and see if you like theirs better than yours (your website, not your leisure suit).  Make changes if necessary.

EMAIL. If someone contacts you by email, reply as quickly as you can. If you don’t know the answer to their question, tell them that and let them know when you will be replying with your answer.  Nothing is more frustrating for an email sender than waiting to see a reply from you.

PHONES.  You’ve got a business phone and a cell phone.  ANSWER THEM when they ring, unless it’s a debt collector and if you build houses for living, you’ve got them.  Even if you have to let the call go to voice mail, return the call quickly.  It could be a buyer looking for a builder. 

GOOGLE MAPS AND MAPQUEST.  Here’s one you probably don’t think of very often.  Try typing in “builder” on either map service and see if your name comes up.  If it doesn’t, find out how to make it happen.  There are a ton on Internet SEO companies that will help you.  This is one cost you have to indulge in.

TWITTER, MYSPACE, FACEBOOK.  You should really explore using these communication services.  If you’re over 50, ask someone to help you! Between your website and these personal sites, you should have quite an audience.

BLOGGING.  This is a great way to get your message out.  Most of the large builder and manufacturers have them. One word of advice.  Keep them updated on a regular basis.  No fewer than one update a week.  Any less than that and you will become irrelevant.

You’ll notice that almost all of these marketing avenues are Internet based but that’s where most of us are getting are news today!

BSC ANNOUNCES INDUSTRY AWARD WINNERS

Each year, the Building Systems Councils honors industry leaders through its Excellence in Marketing and Home Design awards program. The awards honor those excelling in building with systems in the categories of exceptional home design and marketing materials.

Excellence in Marketing

Presentation of Home Plans (Manufacturer): Barden Building Systems (Middleport, NY)

Web Site (Manufacturer): Excel Homes (Camp Hill, PA)

Web Site (Associate): Power Marketing (Hagerstown, MD)

Print Ad (Manufacturer): PrecisionCraft Log and Timber Homes (Meridian, ID)

Print Ad (Associate): American Home Bank (Mountville, PA)

Brochure (Associate): Power Marketing (Hagerstown, MD)

Builder/Dealer Marketing (Manufacturer): Nationwide Custom Homes (Martinsville, VA)

Excellence in Home Design

Outstanding Model/Sales Center (Manufacturer): Estemerwalt Log Homes (Honesdale, PA)

Outstanding Model/Sales Center (Builder): Tony Hirst, LLC (Kittrell, NC)

Modular

Less than 2,300 square feet: Genesis Homes (Troy, MI)

2,300-4,000 square feet: Signature Building Systems (Moosic, PA)

More than 4,000 square feet: Epoch Homes (Pembroke, NH)

Multifamily: Penn Lyon Homes (Selinsgrove, PA)

Honorable mention: Southern Structures, for workforce housing (Ocala, FL)

Honorable mention: Penn Lyon, for green features (Selinsgrove, PA)

Green Building: Epoch Homes (Pembroke, NH)

Panel

Less than 2,300 square feet: Shirey Contracting (Issaquh, WA)

Honorable mention: Connor Homes (Middlebury, VT)

2,300-4,000 square feet: Connor Homes (Middlebury, VT)

More than 4,000 square feet: Connor Homes (Middlebury, VT)

Green Building: Insulspan (Blissfield, MI)

Log

Less than 2,300 square feet: PrecisionCraft Log and Timber Homes (Meridian, ID)

2,300-4,000 square feet: Expedition Log Homes (Oostburg, WI)

Honorable mention: Kuhns Bros. Log Homes (Milton, PA)

More than 4,000 square feet: Tennessee Log Homes (Athens, TN)

Honorable mention: PrecisionCraft Log and Timber Homes (Meridian, ID)

The 2010 BSC Excellence Awards were announced at the 2009 SHOWCASE event in Marco Island Florida on Monday, October 26, 2009.

FED IS HURTING NEW HOME SALES

Over 50% of new home builders interviewed recently said that the new rules for appraising their houses has either killed the sale or made them revisit pricing and design.  The Fed had hoped that it’s new appraisal regulations would make it more fair for anyone buying a house to get an accurate appraisal.

However, Federal actions intended to stabilize inflated real estate prices that led to last year's financial meltdown are instead depressing prices and killing some sales in an already weak market.

At issue is the Home Valuation Code of Conduct for mortgages securitized or held by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac, which deal with about 70 percent of U.S. mortgages.

The new rules, which took effect May 1, were intended to prevent cozy relationships between appraisers, agents and brokers that could lead to bias, fraud and inflated home values.

But industry groups representing builders and real estate agents say the new rules have damaging, unintended consequences: Some appraisers, they say, are unfamiliar with communities and neighborhoods, so they undervalue property. And that can kill a deal when the agreed-to sales price was significantly higher than the appraisal.

The National Association of Realtors says 20 percent of its members report losing more than one deal because an appraisal came in well below the purchase price agreed to by the buyer and seller and at least one of their new homes was appraised at less than the cost of construction.

FOX’S JOHN STOSSEL EXPOSES $8K HOUSING FRAUD

Here is a video of John Stossel reporting about the $8,000 Federal Tax Credit for first time home buyers.  You have to decide for yourself if this tax credit is a good thing or bad.

INTEGRITY BUILDING SYSTEMS GOES SOLAR

In the town of Milton, PA, a small wonder is emerging.  A Solar Farm is being developed for their Industrial Park and it is capable of producing up to 6 megawatts of power! 

Pending some final steps in the approval process, this 30-acre project could be just a couple months from opening construction in the Belford Addition of the park. Completion will hopefully be sometime next summer, according to officials. The 26,000 solar photovoltaic panels — 22 acres worth — that will harness energy from the sun will be situated near Housels Run and Marsh roads.

The farm will produce between 6.5 and 7.1 million kilowatt hours of carbon-free electricity that will directly power two current industrial park businesses — Professional Drivers Academy and Integrity Building Systems — and hypothetically more than 1,790 single-family homes. (Milton Borough has 2,200 single-family homes.) Electricity that goes unused by the two industries will be sold to PPL and placed on the grid.

“Integrity Building Systems Inc. is pleased to announce that we have come to an agreement with Sunforce Solutions International Inc. in cooperation with MAIDA and DPG Power LLC to participate in the solar farm project in the Milton Industrial Park,” said Glenn Salsman, IBS Controller, in a prepared statement. “With this being our 10th year of producing modular homes we are looking forward to being the only modular home manufacturer in the area to use environmentally friendly solar energy to power 100 percent of our production facility.”

SKYLINE – A MUST BUY STOCK?

I know, I could hardly believe it either when I read it.  Skyline has been selected as a “Buy” stock by TransWorldNews.  Who could have predicted that?

Shares of Skyline Corporation (Public, NYSE:SKY) rallied 5.23% to $47.65 in morning trade after it reported late Tuesday third-quarter net income fell 16% from a year ago, hit by restructuring charges. Net income was $229 million, or 57 cents a share, compared to net income of $273.8 million, or 66 cents a share, in the same period last year. Excluding charges, Skyline earned 69 cents a share. Sales were $1.65 billion, unchanged from a year ago. Analysts had forecast them to earn 69 cents a share on sales of $1.6 billion, according to FactSet Research. The company pegged its adjusted 2009 profit in the range of $2.90 to $3 a share. Analysts are looking for $2.96.

Skyline Corporation is engaged in designing, producing and distributing manufactured housing (single section homes, multi-section homes and modular homes) and toward recreational vehicles (travel trailers, fifth wheels and park models). During the fiscal year ended May 31, 2009 (fiscal 2009), the Company old 2,712 manufactured homes.

WICKENBURG, AZ UNDERSTANDS MODULAR HOMES

In the past I’ve called out when local planning and zoning councils have said that modular homes were not allowed in their towns but this time I have to commend a town in Arizona.

At a recent Wickenburg, AZ council meeting where the new zoning regulations were being discussed, the updated ordinance stated that modular or manufactured homes could not be placed on single family residential R1-35 (1 acre), R1-87 (2.5 acres) or R1-175 (4 acres) zoning districts. The update stated that modular homes could only be placed in smaller zoning districts such as R1-18 (18,000 square feet), R1-9 (9,000 square feet) and R1-6 (6,000 square feet).

Then a miracle happened!

The council, with help from audience members, decided that modular homes should be allowed on all single family zoning districts.

What is important here is that the council ACTUALLY listened to audience members about the difference between modular and manufactured housing and decided that MODULAR HOMES ARE REAL HOMES. 

Way to go Wickenburg!!!!

NEW HOME “BUILDING PERMITS” DROP AGAIN

I’m just curious, on what planet can the Federal Government announce the end of the recession, like they did this week, and still have one of the biggest industries in the nation on the rocks?

Applications for home building permits, a key gauge of future construction, fell in September by the largest amount in five months — a discouraging sign for the housing industry. A rebound in housing is needed to support a broader economic recovery.

 Representatives for the industry told a congressional panel Tuesday that the $8,000 tax credit for first-time buyers needs to be extended and expanded to ensure the housing sector will emerge from the recession.

But the Obama administration, facing soaring budget deficits, has not decided whether to support any extension. And some private economists played down the impact of such a move, arguing that most interested buyers already had taken advantage of the tax break.

The applications for building permits fell 1.2 percent, the second setback in the past three months and the biggest decline since a 2.5 percent drop in April. It likely means construction will weaken a bit in coming months, partly because builders had accelerated projects to complete them before the tax credit expires Nov. 30.

The industry also faces other challenges, including record levels of home foreclosures and unemployment that is currently at a 26-year high of 9.8 percent and not expected to peak until next summer.

“DOUBLE BUBBLE” OF RECESSION HITS

More than two years into the worst housing crisis in decades, commercial real estate is shaping up as the second half of what some are calling a “double bubble.” Owners of shopping malls, hotels, office space and apartment buildings — and the bankers who financed them — face a major crunch over the next two years as the mortgages on those properties start coming due.

Much like homeowners who now owe more on their mortgage than their house is worth, many commercial property owners have seen the value of their properties plummet, increasing the risk of default on hundreds of billions in commercial real estate loans.

Though the market is only about a third the size of the $22 trillion residential market, in some ways the problem for commercial real estate is more severe. Unlike home mortgages that run for 15 or 30 years, much of the roughly $1.6 trillion in commercial real estate loans outstanding involves much shorter terms of three to seven years. Many of the loans were written at the height of the boom.

“I have never seen anything this bad,” said Dan Tishman, CEO of Tishman Construction, one of the nation's leading construction and management firms, comparing the current slide to major commercial real estate busts in the 1980s and '90s.

“There was this unbelievable bout of lending that occurred all on a very short term,” said Tishman. “With short maturities you’ve squeezed the accordion as close as you can get and caused a lot more refinancing in a short period of time.”

For commercial real estate owners, the problem starts with the impact of the recession on their properties. Massive layoffs have left office buildings with unrented space. The slowdown in consumer spending is hitting owners of malls and retail space where foot traffic has dried up. Hotel owners have been hurt by the slowdown in travel and tourism.

On top of lost rent, commercial real estate owners who bought properties at the height of the boom have suffered the same fate as homeowners and suffered plunging values. From the peak in mid-2007, commercial property values are down by some 35 percent, according to Moody’s.

As commercial real estate loans come due, property owners face the same dilemma as many homeowners. If they sell the property, they’ll take a big loss. But to refinance, they’ll have to come up with a lot of cash to make up for the value lost since they took out the loan.

Most lenders are not especially interested in foreclosing because they’ll lose money selling into a distressed commercial real estate market. That’s prompted lenders to undertake a strategy of what industry insiders are calling “pretend and extend."

As long as the commercial property owner is making payments, bankers are willing to delay refinancing for a few years in hopes that the economy and real estate market improve. But it remains to be seen whether that strategy will work.

2009 SOLAR DECATHLON

Article By John Zorabedian, The Daily Tell

A contest sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy is a powerful way to demonstrate the benefit to society of solar energy, as the Solar Decathlon 2009 proved last week with teams from around the world competing in Washington, D.C.

The teams built their solar-powered homes on the National Mall, using the best technology and designs, energy efficient materials and sustainable building practices. The top prize for the decathlon went to the team from Germany, which built a black cube-like house covered din solar panels for maximum surplus energy.

Team Germany applied photovoltaics to every available surface, easily winning the Net Metering contest and performed well in several others, including competitions in lighting design, comfort and producing hot water.

According to press reports, the German team’s house had the potential for generation as high as 11,000 watts. The solar cells powered all the electricity, including for hot water, with enough left over to give energy away.

Competitors from the United States took the second and third place prizes in the overall decathlon, but showed the most excellence in separate categories. The team from the University of Minnesota grabbed the award for best lighting design, using less than 500 watts to power all the interior and exterior lighting.

The University of Minnesota’s ICON Solar House earned praise for its use of natural lighting and the appearance of the cube-like building with its glowing night-time appearance and pleasing use of daylight.

TEAM MINNESOTA

Using advanced technology, the glass can be set to tint to reduce glare during the daytime, while retaining the view of outdoors. Large south-facing windows are turned to the angle to maximize light form the sun as it moves across the sky.

 TEAM CALIFORNIA TEAM CORNELLTEAM ILLINOIS

CHAMPION HOMES FACES BANKRUPTCY

Oh, how times have changed.  Just a few short years ago, Champion Homes was buying home manufacturing businesses in the UK and Canada and today they are about to miss another round of debt payments which could lead to bankruptcy.  They are about to miss the end-month deadline put forth by their lenders!

A leader in factory-built construction, Champion currently operates 27 manufacturing facilities. They have closed over 30 plants the past several years.

Champion’s revenues for the second quarter dropped 55.2 percent to $129.5 million, compared to $289.2 million for the second quarter of 2008. The company reported a loss before income taxes of $13.3 million for the second quarter compared to pretax income of $3.6 million in the same period of 2008, according to the company’s latest financial report.

I’ll bet Warren Buffet is smiling!

CHINESE DRYWALL PROBLEMS HEATING UP

The homeowners who bought homes from builders that used the tainted Chinese drywall have just been hit with a second blow, this time from their homeowner’s insurance carriers.

It seems that your homeowner’s policy does not cover damage from “pollution” which is the insurer’s way of saying “Sorry, but we don’t cover that!”  And to add insult to injury, these same insurance companies are now cancelling or not renewing the homeowners’ policies because of the preexisting condition…Chinese Drywall.

Now comes the scary part for our industry.  These homeowners are starting to load their shotguns and filing lawsuits against anyone in our industry that can even say ”Chinese Drywall.”  What recourse do they have except to sue the builder, the drywall contractor, the drywall supplier and all their insurance companies.

Claims will involve not only homeowners asking their insurers for help remediating, but also pursuing the commercial liability policies of builders, contractors and suppliers who handled the product before it got to their homes. And if federal investigators can establish a link between the gases emitted by the drywall and health problems that people are experiencing, there could be a wave of bodily injury claims.

Now the builders, some of the biggest names in our industry, are suing the drywall subcontractors and they in turn are suing the suppliers.  I even heard of a case where the drywall contractor is suing his job foreman for choosing Chinese Drywall when he ordered it from the supplier.

Industry experts are predicting that the total cost to settle all the lawsuits and make all the repairs along with the personal damage suits could run between $15 and $20 BILLION Dollars!!!

MODULAR FACTORIES BLOW GOLDEN OPPORTUNITY

Over the past 4 years, I’ve written numerous stories about how builders and manufacturers have put their business on the Internet, newspaper, TV and even YouTube.  But now I’m starting to notice another trend….invisibility!

Many newspapers are sending reporters out to cover stories about those new-fangled modular homes that are put up in one day and people move in 30-60 days later!  For some reason, the newspapers equate this to alien landings.

But they real story for factory owners is that just about every story I see coming across my desk, and I see hundreds of them a month, feature the builder being interviewed about the new modular house they just built but I very rarely see the name of the manufacturer.

And why is this?  The reason is two fold.  The builder really doesn’t want the newspaper to know who manufactured the home because they are either ashamed of the factory name or they don’t want another builder in the area to call their factory and start selling homes from them OR, the factory was never told that a story was being written and they never had a chance to comment on it for the article or video.

Do you think a new car dealer could have an article in the newspaper about his latest model without naming the factory?  Hell No!  Ford or GM wouldn’t stand for it.

Here’s a unique suggestion!  Why don’t factories pay the dealer $1,000 for every story published in a newspaper or magazine that mentions the home was manufactured by them.  If they did this every quarter for a new house bought from them that quarter by that builder, they would shell out $4,000 and SELL 4 more homes!

Brilliant! 

Stupendous!

Amazing!

Thank You!

DON’T BE ACCUSED OF GREENWASHING

When the whole Green movement started in our industry, a lot of builders and manufacturers jumped on the green bandwagon.  I don’t think anyone really understood the “green” thing back then but we’ve come a long way in the past 10 years.

Unfortunately, a lot of good intentioned people in our industry have done and said things about their products being green that just weren’t quite on target and now the term “greenwashing” has become part of our vocabulary.

“Greenwashing” is making false or dubious claims or statements about whether your product or service is green, or how it is green.

Here are some points to remember when making those “green” statements to your customers.

1. Don’t Lie!  Don’t make false or misleading statements. Enough said!

2. Show the Proof!  If you say something is “green”, be able to back up your statements with proof, preferably from a third party from within our industry.  Many manufacturers have spent tons of money on research and development so that the products use in home building are green. They have the proof.  Use their literature!

3. Don’t Stretch the Truth!  Just because something saves the consumer a few dollars, don’t tell them it’s because the product is green.  Consumers know the difference.

4. Show Them the Label!  You can’t and don’t even try.  Only Energy Star labels are accepted by everyone because the Federal Government regulates what is required to earn it.  “Green” has no standard labeling and probably won’t have it for some time.

5. “All Natural” isn’t Green! The lumber in your house is natural as are the marble tops.  That doesn’t make them green.  Mercury is “natural” but everyone knows it can kill you.

One of the best builder websites to learn about “Green” is from a builder in Maryland.  Visit the site: www.finishwerks.com.  I’m sure if you have questions about “Green”, Harris Woodward, the builder would answer them for you.

6 MYTHS OF GREEN LIVING

An Article by Jennifer Goodman is Senior Editor Online for EcoHome.

A new national study of green consumers contradicts several long-held stereotypes about them: The environment is not their top concern, their kids are not influencing them to be green, and while many know what they should do to save the planet, they often don’t do it.

As a result, marketing messages aimed at this group often fall on deaf ears, says Suzanne Shelton, whose Knoxville, Tenn., firm, Shelton Group, conducted the study.

“Most green advertising is created as if there’s one pool of green consumers and they’re all motivated by ‘Save the planet!’ messaging,” Shelton says. “We need a revolution in this thinking. Not all green consumers are the same, they’re not all motivated by the same messages, and they’re not all inclined to buy only green products.”

Released Aug. 21, the Green Living Pulse study polled 1,007 U.S. consumers who at least occasionally buy green products (77% of the population) and found there is no typical “green consumer.”

The study discovered six myths about this group:

Myth 1: Green consumers’ top concern is the environment.
When asked to identify their top concern, the economy, by far, is No. 1 (with 59% calling it their top concern) and the environment falls far behind (8%).

Myth 2: Green consumers’ main motivation when reducing their energy use is to save the planet.
When asked the most important reason to reduce energy consumption, 73% chose “to reduce my bills/control costs” and only 26% chose “to lessen my impact on the environment.”

Myth 3: Green consumers are all-knowledgeable about environmental issues.
For example, the survey asked, “From what you have read or heard about CO2 (carbon dioxide), please place a check beside any of the following statements you think are true.”  Almost half (49%) chose the incorrect answer, “It depletes the ozone layer.”

Myth 4: Green consumers fall into a simple demographic profile.
While the study detected some demographic tendencies, it found that green consumers aren’t easily defined by their age, income, or ethnicity. 

Myth 5: Children play a big part in influencing their parents to be green.
Only 20% of respondents with children said their kids encouraged them to be greener by, for example, promoting recycling and turning off lights.

Myth 6:  If buyers just knew the facts they’d make greener choices.
The study showed that knowledge does not always lead to eco-conscious behavior. Individuals who answered all of the science-related questions correctly did report participating in a significantly higher average number of green activities, such as driving a fuel-efficient car or lowering their thermostat during the winter; however, the 25- to 34-year-old age group consistently answered the questions correctly, yet, on average, this group’s green activity levels were lower than those of older respondents.

“Because green consumers are being stereotyped, and these myths we tested are embraced by marketers as facts, many green messages are falling on deaf ears,” Shelton says. “If these messages were better targeted, more people would be buying green products, conserving electricity, and doing more to save the planet.”