Alabama’s White-Hot March Residential Housing Market

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According to the Alabama Center for Real Estate (ACRE), Alabama’s housing market is exceeding all expectations, and 80 percent of the state’s housing markets have improved over March 2014. Sales for the month exceeded the market forecast for March by 5.4 percent. Home sales in Alabama totaled 4,289 units for the month, which indicates growth of 19.3 percent over the previous year. These figures are 25.2 percent above the five-year March sales average of 3,426 units. Year-to-date sales are up 13 percent from 2014.

Alabama’s housing inventory for March was 32.225 units, which was 1 percent lower than inventory levels for March 2014, and 22.2 percent lower than the peak March numbers in 2008. The housing supply was 7.5 months, which is on par with the NSA-determined equilibrium. Supply levels have favorably dropped 17 percent from the previous year (9.1 months), but the March inventory marks a 1.5 percent increase over the February inventory. This increase is in line with historical expectations which denote a 2.3 percent inventory increase between February and March each year.

Residential home sales increased 33.4 percent over February’s rates, which increase is consistent with the historical trend of 30 percent average increase in sales from February to March. The numbers are also consistent with the projections of industry professionals in the Center’s 2015 Q2 Alabama real Estate Confidence Index (ARECI). There was a slight slowdown in the Days on Market (DOM) rate, as the average number of days a house spent on market is was 162, which is 2.6 percent longer than the March 2014 DOM. Alabama sales outstripped national sales for March, as the broader US market only showed an increase of 10.4 percent over March 2014.

The median home price in Alabama is up 7 percent over last year’s numbers, an increase of 17 percent over the rock-bottom prices of March 2011. Although some have characterized house pricing activity as softer than expected, the sales pricing improved 7.9 percent over February’s prices, and 7.5 percent over rates in March 2014. 64 percent of the state’s local real estate markets saw year-to-date price gains. This increase nearly doubled the historical expectations for the month, which usually sees a 4.2 percent price increase between February and March.

 

Don’t Drown in Unexpected Pool Installation Expenses

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There are a number of good reasons to invest in a swimming pool for your backyard: they invite your family to spend more time together, provide a great backdrop for parties and gatherings, create a space for fitness and exercise, and are a cost-effective way to create a vacation experience right at home. But one of the biggest concerns that a homeowner has regarding a new pool is the cost to install and maintain it.

As Jason Hargraves of Angie’s List points out, asking a pool company to estimate the cost of installing a pool will only ever get you a partial answer, because there are a lot of hidden factors that might not be considered in the estimate. For an in-ground pool, it’s dead easy to factor in size, water features, enclosures, patio elements and heaters, and the typical estimate ranges widely from $25,000 to $50,000 for an in-ground pool of an average size in an average city.

According to Marcus Sheridan of River Pools and Spas, what rarely gets factored in to these estimates are the hidden costs. “I’ve seen examples of homeowners getting hit with such costs after the start of the project by their pool company many, many times,” he says, but that “most can and should be caught, or at least brought to light, beforehand.” There are six major costs that can balloon a pool-building budget: dirt, landscaping, e

Dirt Disposal: In-ground pools generate a lot of dirt. When the pool is built, a lot of dirt is taken from the ground, and that dirt has to go somewhere. Make sure that your pool builder has included the cost of hauling dirt with in the project budget estimates.

Pool Surround: pools need patio space around them. Usually, this means additional concrete for the patio. The extra cost of prepping and pouring a concrete deck is one of the more expensive hidden costs of pool installation, so ask the installer if this costs have been factored in.

Retaining walls: to ensure that the in-ground pool and surrounding decks are very stable, and to help with proper yard drainage, one or more retaining walls may be necessary. Talk to the contractor beforehand to make sure that the price of retaining walls has been settled and included in the budget.

Landscaping: The procedures used to dig out and install a pool require heavy equipment. The coming and going of these machines will wreck havoc upon your lawn, especially if some of your nicer flower beds and terracing have to be trampled or ripped out to accommodate the machines. Any grass that was disturbed during pool installation needs to be re-seeded, and any terraced plant beds will have to be reinforced and re-planted after the pool has been installed.

Fences: nearly all city ordinances require that a pool be enclosed within a fence of some form. It is better to add the fence while the pool is being installed rather than wait until the pool has been finished. In fact, the fence should be included along with the pool design and deck while the pool is being planned.

Electrical: the surprise expenses of this item can really shock homeowners (pun intended). Some pool builders include electrical hook-up as part of the pool installation package. Others invoice poolside electricity separately. The extend of the electrical hook-up will depend on the number of pool lights, spa jets, or water features that the homeowner requests. Be sure of the costs involved and how electric will be invoiced by your pool installer.

Major Multifamily Renovation for Downtown Jacksonville

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HBW subscribers seeking multifamily building permit leads in Jacksonville already know about the major multifamily renovation coming to Downtown Jacksonville. The Cathedral Terrace building at 710 N. Ocean Street will soon undergo major interior renovations and repairs to all 240 single-bedroom units as part of the Renew Jax urban redevelopment project.

The Cathedral Terrace project was built in 1974 for elderly and disabled residents with low incomes. The $27 million renovation will upgrade to the building’s infrastructure, including plumbing, HVAC, elevators, lighting, and security system. New windows and doors, and a new roof will also be part of the remodel.

Money for the project, which is sponsored by the Aging True nonprofit agency, comes from the State Housing Initiatives partnership program. $803,000 will come from the city, with the majority of project funding provided by the Jacksonville Housing Finance Authority. Loans totaling $3.93 million have been grated by the Florida Housing Finance Corporation. Aging True is currently accepting bids for a general contractor to oversee the renovation process.

The 5-year Renew Jax project is a partnership between LISC Jacksonville and the city. This public-private partnership is investing $35 million in private, state, and federal funding in East and Northwest Jacksonville with the goal of improving housing and stimulating economic development. LISC has invested $20 million, with municipal, state, and federal agencies contributing $15.5 million. In addition to renovation and construction, Renew Jax will improve the city’s aging drainage system and redevelop the city’s under-occupied historic neighborhoods.

Contact HBWeekly today to get information on Jacksonville’s incredible opportunities. HBWeekly has proudly served builders in Florida for more than two decades, providing the latest and best building permit data information, as well as building activity reports and market analysis. To see how HBW can help your business succeed, we are happy to provide you with complementary building data report or one of our specialized White Paper Reports. Contact us today and start making your business more profitable.

Top 3 Energy-Efficient Renovations

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With utility bills climbing ever-higher, many homeowners are wondering whether they can improve their home’s level of energy use. While the typical goal of renovation is to increase the beauty, style, and function of a home, builders should remind homeowners that increased energy efficiency can often be incorporated into those goals. Energy efficient, beautiful renovations not only raise the future resale value of a home, they also lower the current utility costs homeowners typically pay. The three best energy-efficient renovations that can be incorporated into a current remodeling project are increased airtightness, better insulation, and new windows and doors.

Airtightness: Energy efficient homes are made to be airtight because excess air exchange forces the climate control systems to work harder (and use more power). It’s much easier to regulate the inside temperature with the heated or cooled are isn’t escaping. During major renovations, take the time to wrap exterior walls with an air barrier before installing siding or masonry. If an addition is being added to the home, there is no reason not to make that room more airtight prior to installing the exterior façade.

Even though most renovations aren’t so major as to remove the exterior, there are still smaller-scale retrofits that can be done to make a home more airtight. Addressing the drafts and gaps in doorways, around windows, and exterior walls to reduce air leakage will go far in improving a home’s airtightness.

Insulation: Another excellent way to boost energy efficiency is to add extra or improved insulation to the home. Adding attic and wall insulation is a great way to stop heat exchange. Much like adding an air barrier to external walls, the complexities of adding more insulation to exterior or interior walls are daunting and often beyond the scope of even a major remodel.

Adding insulation to the attic is an easier project that still yields energy savings. In deciding whether to use blown-in loose fill insulation or classic rolled insulation, it is key to know if the attic will be “conditioned” space—that is, know whether the attic will be heated and cooled like the rest of the house. Loose fill can go anywhere, but rolled insulation between rafters should only be installed in conditioned space. It’s also important to note where conditioned space abuts or overlaps with unconditioned space, for example a mud room wall between the unheated garage and the heated kitchen. Floors build over crawlspaces also need insulation.

Portals: Replacing old windows and doors with energy-efficient models is a simple and effective way to increase a home’s energy efficiency. To make sure that the new doors and windows fit into the home’s design style, consult with a design expert who can guide the process and ensure that the new models fit into the home’s existing style and increase its curb appeal.

All new windows are double-paned insulated glass, and some models have special inert gas between the panes to increase the insulation value. They are also glazed with a low-E coating, which is a microscopic layer of metallic oxides that deflects ultra-violet rays and helps inhibit radiant heat transference through the glass. When replacing the doors and windows, it’s a good idea to patch any gaps and properly flash the openings to prevent excess moisture and air from seeping into the home.

 

Planning for Greener Use of 4 Common Construction Materials

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Whether you are building a LEED-platinum certified condominium downtown or a cozy eco-conscious vacation getaway in the country, it’s a good idea to plan the greenest materials usage possible when building your project. More and more clients demand green building in their new projects, because eco-consciousness adds marketing cache and resale value to homes.

As it turns out, some planning of how you will use and dispose of how common, everyday, not-especially-green materials during the building process can really bump up your green building credibility come certification time.

Concrete: One of the most energy-efficient, environmentally-friendly and adaptable building materials is concrete. Although concrete is usually consigned to foundations, driveways, and sidewalks, larger numbers of homeowners are looking into poured concrete construction. Innovative outdoors use of concrete is popping up in terraced landscaping and fencing, but concrete is making major strides as a flooring material. Custom-poured concrete countertops are becoming quite popular as well. Concrete is impervious to climate and pests, and it weathers natural disasters quite gracefully. Maximize your green quotient by using energy-efficient, non-toxic autoclaved aerated concrete (AAC) or concrete made with recycled content.

Wood: Another ubiquitous construction material, wood is a multi-purpose material that has also been used in home building for centuries. Softwood trees such as pine and hardwood trees such as maple will often be found in new homes as paneling, sheathing, veneer, siding, subflooring, and framing or for decorative trim, molding, and cabinets. Wood is a renewable resource, but some providers grow, manage, and harvest their wood in a more sustainable fashion than others. To use the most eco-conscious wood possible, look for a provider that has been certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC).

Brick and Stone: These materials are perennial favorites for flooring and facades. While the fine detail of clay brick and the natural beauty of stone add much to a home’s curb appeal, both materials are problematic for eco-conscious construction. Bricks have been made and used for millennia, but modern brick manufacture consumes massive amounts of non-renewable resources and generates a significant carbon pollution footprint. Stone is a more natural material that has a lower carbon footrpint, but it is classified as a non-renewable resource. The good news is that because of their durability and strength, both brick and stone are easy to salvage and repurpose. The Restoration Trades Directory can help you locate brick and stone salvage providers in your area. You can also look through your city’s demolition permits to find brick and stone structures that are slated for demolition.

 

National Housing Starts Underperform in April, Experts Still Optimistic

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The actual housing starts fell short of the projected numbers for March 2015, as the nation’s economic recovery hit a soft patch during the first three months of the year. A harsh winter, the West Coast port labor dispute, weak global growth and strengthening of the dollar created speed bumps in the path to America’s financial recovery.

Growth is expected to rebound in the next quarter, but lukewarm data released on Thursday by ITG Investment Research suggests that the momentum will lag too much for the Fed to start raising interest rates before September. Steve Blitz, ITG’s chief economist, says that the economy’s “tepid recovery in March makes it very unlikely the Fed signals a June rate hike at the April meeting. If housing doesn’t recover enough this spring, a September rate hike likely becomes equally improbable.”

The Commerce Department’s seasonally adjusted annual pace of 926,000 new housing units indicates a 2 percent increase over last year. The modest increase failed to offset the majority of Febrary’s decline in home building, which has been blamed on bad weather nationwide. This brief rise in stats for single-family housing did not mitigate the losses accrued in January and February. Multifamily starts fell short of the 1.04 million-unit pace predicted for March.

The new housing starts reflect the underwhelming trends in business activity and manufacturing for April. The Philadelphia Federal Reserve Bank reports that its business activity index rose to 7.5 percent this month from 5.0 percent in March. JP Morgan in New York reports that orders for manufactured goods fell to the lowest level since May 2013. New York state factory activity has been soft in April. The dollar’s 13 percent appreciation combined with softer international demand have slammed the manufacturing sector. “Combined, the April reports are not signaling that manufacturing activity is picking up significantly following the weak first quarter,” said JP Morgan economist Daniel Silver.

A strengthening labor market provides some reason to predict that the housing outlook remains favorable despite the less-than-stellar performance during the first quarter. Although the Labor Department reports a rise in the number of new unemployment activity last week, the job market is tightening as the long-term unemployed find work. The four-week average of claims demonstrates only marginal growth in unemployment, which currently sets below the 300,000-claims-per-week threshold established in December of 2000.

Jesse Hurwitz, an economist for Barclay’s in New York, says that “we continue to view claims data as reflective of overall improvement in labor markets.” As more people receive a paychecks and lending standards ease up slightly, first-time buyers are entering the housing market, which will lead to gains in for 2015. March was the eighth straight month that permits for new residential construction remained above the 1 million-unit mark.

Bechtel Approved to Launch Drone Program for Construction Management

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The FAA has granted Bechtel permission to use unmanned aircraft system technology on construction projects in the United States. Bechtel’s application says that this “virtual project delivery” approach will significantly enhance the construction process.

Bechtel’s Manager of Construction Mike Lewis says, “The use of UASs is crucial to continued innovation in engineering and construction. We teamed with Skycatch to explore innovative ways of integrating drones into our execution systems, particularly on the megaprojects Bechtel is building around the world.” Lewis says that “this technology helps improve safety and quality of project delivery by providing real-time data and analysis to project teams so they can act in a timely manner.”

According to company CEO Christian Sanz, Skycatch’s fully autonomous UAV data collection system “has pioneered the space of automating machines for massive data retrieval at scale. In doing so, we are able to provide hi-res data at an incredibly fast, safe and efficient rate for companies all over the world. Our uniquely talented team of engineers, designers, and operations staff is excited to continue to push forward with Komatsu, as we both share the same passion to unleash this innovative technology to their thousands of active global jobs sites.”

The FAA granted authorization for drone usage under the Section 333 provision of the 2012 FAA modernization and Reform Act, which was passed to facilitate the use of cutting-edge UAS technology and platforms such as Skycatch which leverage drone data. Skycatch gathers and analyzes data in real-time, which increases the efficiency of large-scale construction projects. Especially innovative is Skycatch’s automated power system which recharges during drone operation, which allows drones to fly for extended periods of time. High-definition cameras, infrared imaging, thermal sensors, and radiation monitors are some of the measurement instruments that are installed on each Skycatch drone.

“We have put a lot of thought into our drones and their operation, heavily focused on the safe and efficient use of the technology,” adds Sanz, “we developed a unique platform connected to a Cloud for real-time analytics, and with pre-programed geographic controls for safe operation and compliance with flight announcements.”

Skycatch and Bechtel collaborated in 2013 to enrich the UAS platform and integrate it into Bechtel’s systems and processes. Drone data can now be stored and analyzed in the cloud, and viewed on multiple devices by team members and stakeholders from any location. The technology’s feasibility was proven during the construction of the largest LNG project in Australia, where Bechtel collected environmental data to ensure the safety of the project operations, surveyed terrain that was otherwise inaccessible, and track the construction process in real-time.

BIM Drives Efficiency in Building Construction & Maintenance

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3D modeling technology is gaining ground as a means to drive efficient, green construction efforts. Use of 3D modeling as a design tool improves the quality of technical information that builders can get from tech specs.

Higher-quality information will help builders greatly reduce production time, waste in offcuts, abortive work, and bring an end to chronic over-ordering of building materials. When laid out in the 3D Building Information Model (BIM), new build properties can be tested before implementation, a move that can reduce the cost of property development by 20% or more.

Even better, 3D modeling can help reduce waste and costs for remodeling and refurbishing existing buildings, too. This is especially important for historic preservation efforts, where detailed historic architectural information must be overlaid with the more recent infrastructural information as well as the proposed renovations and alterations.

3D BIM begins by scanning the building inside and outside with a tripod-mounted laser scanner that is calibrated to millimeter accuracy. The laser scanner charts all building surfaces as coordinate points along an x-y-z graphical plain. The laser scans are repeated from multiple angles to make sure that nothing is missing or left out. The laser data is then uploaded to the computer and rendered to link the coordinates from each of the scans, which process creates a detailed 3D digital model of the building.

Regardless of whether it’s built from scratch or made from scans of an existing building, once constructed, the 3D model is attached to a number of cross-indexed databases, which allows for a number of different stakeholders to access real-time updates and alterations that have been made to the 3D model.

In addition to the 3D structural model, 3D models of the water, electrical, gas, HVAC, and other utility infrastructure can be superimposed on the existing model. These infrastructural renderings are also uploaded to the shared database. This allows stakeholders to easily and quickly access the specific information about particular plumbing and power junctures without having to trawl through masses of renderings and information. It also allows designers to test green technology retrofits and improvements virtually to measure the benefits before those improvements are implemented.

KB Home Opens Community in New Braunfels

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As HBW subscribers in the San Antonio market could tell you, business in booming in New Braunfels, with the opening of KB Homes’ new West Village neighborhood in the Creekside development. The neighborhood will offer two customizable home design collections featuring multiple floorplans and a full range of amenities.

Proximity to the I-35 corridor and Highway 46 as well as the blue-ribbon Comal school district and the burgeoning Town Center at Creekside make West Village a very desirable location. The Town Center district will also soon be home to the largest healthcare center between San Antonio and Austin. Major employers along the I-35 corridor include Randolph Air Force Base, Sysco, and Texas State University.

Brett Dietz, president of KB Home’s San Antonio division says, “both homebuyers and realtors have been waiting for West Village at Creekside to open because its prime location provides a trifecta of commuting, educational and commercial/recreational benefits.”

Recreational opportunities abound in the area as well. Mere minutes from Buc-ees and historic downtown New Braunfels, West Village is also nearby the Guadalupe River, the renowned Landa Park water park, and the premiere live entertainment venue, Gruene Hall. The neighborhood itself will have a private park with landscaped pool and children’s playscape, a picnic pavilion, and walking trails.

There are 27 adaptable one- and two-story floor plans with two-car garages and stucco, brick, and stone exteriors as standard features. Homes from the Heritage collection range from 1,340 to 2,708 square feet, and Classic Collection homes range from 1,792 to 3,699 square feet. Prices start in the $170K’s. All homes are Energy Star certified to be more water- and energy-efficient than the area’s other new-built homes, which means lower monthly utility bills for homeowners.

HBW serves builders in Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Texas, and Oklahoma. In addition to our Building Trend Activity for Residential Construction Reports, HBW can create a number of custom reports for any need you might have. We also offer exclusive White Paper Reports to help you market your business. White papers start by giving an overview of the trends in your area and then advice on how to turn your weekly building permit information subscription into successful business leads. To show you how we can help your business succeed, HBW is glad to provide you with complementary building data report or one of our specialized White Paper Reports. Contact us today and start making your business more profitable!

Miami/South Florida Housing Market Tops in Nation

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HBW subscribers in South Florida aren’t surprised to discover that the Miami housing market is rated tops nationwide. In the most recent update of the Case-Schiller Home Price Index, the Miami and Denver housing markets were singled out as top performers. Home prices in both markets rose more than 8 percent during the past year, a growth rate unparalleled by any other city tracked by the index. According to the index, “Denver and Miami reported the highest year-over-year gains, as [home] prices increased by 8.4% and 8.3%, respectively, over the last 12 months.” National prices averaged a 4.5 percent increase in January 2015 as compared with the year-over-year percentage of 2014.

The Miami/South Florida real estate market rose by 8.3 percent in 2015, which was the second-largest gain of any city in the index. The Miami market was also a top performer on a month-by-month basis, with prices increasing 0.7 percent between November and December 2014, and increasing again by 0.7 percent from December 2014 to January 2015. The gains are due to the rapidly dropping housing inventory in the Miami metro area, combined with the steady demand for housing during the beginning of 2014, which rose significantly later in the year.

 

Graph Courtesy of the Home Buying Institute

housing index

With new construction and stabilizing pressure applied by the tapering-off of the job market, supply and demand are better balanced in the housing sector. According to Realtor.com’s recent report, the total number of Miami homes listed declined by 3 percent over the last 12 months, while other metros experienced a decline of 20 percent or more. The Miami housing inventory of newly-built and pre-existing homes has been relatively stable over the past year.

Miami’s stable housing market is predicted to slowly cool off during 2015, with South Florida reflecting the same trend more broadly. Current trends indicate that the market will make more modest gains for the coming year. In Zillow’s 12-month forecast for the Miami-Fort Lauderdale metro area, home prices are projected to rise only 1.3 percent, as compared with the 11.7 percent gains of last year.

Demand for housing is projected to remain steady as low mortgage rates and an improving job market continues fo fuel home sales in the Miami housing market. Miami’s unemployment rate was 5.5 percent in January of 2015, which is half of the recession peak of 11 percent in 2010. The market’s home buyers are more well established than they have been in recent years. Long-term mortgage rates are languishing well below 4 percent, which makes home loans attractive to potential buyers. Long-term mortgage rates are expected to remain low for the foreseeable future.

HBW serves builders in Alabama, Georgia, Texas, Florida, and Oklahoma. In addition to our Building Trend Activity for Residential Construction Reports, HBW can create a number of custom reports for any need you might have. We also offer exclusive White Paper Reports to help you market your business. White papers start by giving an overview of the trends in your area and then advice on how to turn your weekly building permit information subscription into successful business leads. To show you how we can help your business succeed, HBW is glad to provide you with complementary building data report or one of our specialized White Paper Reports. Contact us today and start making your business more profitable!