New Home Construction in Atlanta 2022

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An overview of the highs and lows of new home construction permit data in the Atlanta area during 2022

After a strong year in 2021, new home construction took a downward turn in the Metro Atlanta area last year. Through January to December 2022, there were 23,174 new residential construction permits added to the HBW database for the Atlanta area; this reflects a significant 19 percent year-over-year decrease in new home construction.

Despite the overall drop in new permits, there were some counties that flourished last year. Out of the 24 counties that make up the Metro Atlanta area, there were five counties that defied the odds and actually exhibited year-over-year growth over the 12-month period; those counties are as follows:

  • Rockdale County: 421 permits, +75 percent YOY
  • Clarke County: 233 permits, +40 percent YOY
  • Paulding County: 1,315 permits, +12 percent YOY
  • Cherokee County: 2,344 permits, +7 percent YOY
  • Carroll County: 622 permits, +1 percent YOY

While the remaining nineteen counties all fell below residential construction activity levels from the previous year, there were still areas that carried a significantly high volume of new permitting activity. In fact, there were five counties where approximately 47 percent of all new permits originated; those counties with the greatest amount of new residential construction activity last year were as follows:

#1-Gwinnett County: 3,567 permits

#2-Cherokee County: 2,344 permits

#3-Fulton County: 2,012 permits

#4-Cobb County: 1,541 permits

#5-Forsyth County: 1,420 permits

When reviewing HBW’s Building Activity Trend Report to identify the areas with the greatest amount of higher value (>$500k) new residential construction, three counties came out on top, holding more than half of all higher value permits; those counties are as follows:

#1-Fulton County: 497 permits with values > $500k

#2-Coweta County: 191 permits with values > $500k

#3-Cherokee County: 177 permits with values > $500k

Information utilized for the above listed figures for Metro Atlanta residential construction was directly derived from HBW construction data reports. To gain access to the HBW database and receive custom and detailed reports on the latest residential and commercial building activity in Florida, Georgia, Texas, Alabama, and Oklahoma, please contact HBW for details.

5 Ways to Strengthen Your Social Media Profile

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Easy ways to improve your presence on social media

Becoming active and establishing a presence on social media couldn’t be easier. At this stage in the game, all you need is an email address and creative handle, and you are good to go – Right?

Not really. The truth is that while getting on social media is easy, creating a professional profile is an entirely different story. Although there appears to be few rules in place when it comes to social media for personal purposes, your company’s social presence is the face of your business; what you say and do can and will impact your reputation. Additionally, most of your leads and contacts will check out your activity on social platforms to learn more about you, and what you post may just be the first and only content prospects see when looking into your products and services.

For this reason, it is important that you make the most of your social media presence by effectively reflecting your brand and professionalism. Here are tips for improving your business profiles:

Keep it Fresh – It’s easy to make social media profiles a depository for images, events, and news, but it is important to add relevant content that reflects your brand and company as it stands today. Don’t allow your page to become outdated or stale. By maintaining a steady flow of new and fresh content, you can increase engagement and attract new visitors.

Talk to Your Audience – A common issue with managing social media profiles is responding to feedback, comments, and messages.  Where and when appropriate, make an effort to follow up with inquiries, requests and responses (positive and negative). Take time to thank those who provide positive feedback and remain professional and noncombative when responding to negative feedback.

Make Accounts Secure – Whether you have one or several social media account managers, you should have a system in place for regularly securing accounts. What this essentially means is that passwords for profiles should be strong and changed on a quarterly or bi-annual basis.  Additionally, users/members of the page should be reviewed to verify that each user has the appropriate level of access (admin or limited user) and is still employed by your company.

Keep it Real – The bots in the world of social media are simply unavoidable. From spamming a blog’s comments section to relentlessly following and messaging you on Twitter, they are out there.  For this reason, it is important to eliminate fake followers, bots and connections that don’t abide by network guidelines and/or post questionable content.

Choose Wisely – When establishing a page/profile for business purposes, it is important that you choose platform(s) wisely.  Building a following and presence on any social media platform takes time, and some may be a better fit for your brand than others. You will want to consider where you can best reach your target audience, the type of content that is most effective on each platform, and who and how you will maintain the account.

Social media can be a great way to share interesting content about your company, its culture and your team, and the above listed tips can help you remain professional, reach your target market, and ultimately convert current visitors to future customers.

For more information on construction business marketing tips, stay connected with the HBW Blog.  To get ahead of construction activity and gain access to the latest permitting data in Florida, Texas, Georgia, Alabama and Oklahoma, contact HBW for more information on construction data reports and industry leads.

Using Building Permit Data to Improve Marketing

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A summary of how construction data reports can benefit your marketing efforts

As HBW subscribers already know, a wide range of construction permit data is available and constantly updated in the HBW database. And while there are many ways to understand and gain insight on your target audience and market, there is nothing quite as accurate as building permit data.  When you have access to detailed information about construction that is happening in your target market(s), you can create a marketing strategy that is tailored to the demand and pattern of each area where you provide products/services.

In addition to gaining a greater understanding of current trends and projects within your target market, construction permit data can also provide in-depth insight into seasonal and past patterns (through archived reports), as well as give you a better understanding of where and how your direct competition is performing within a given region.

As any marketer knows, understanding your target audience and their interests is an essential part of developing an effective marketing strategy. Although talking to customers and industry partners can offer some useful information about your audience, building permits provide information about the types of projects that are of greatest interest, as well as data on the average cost and value of a variety of projects within your area; this is especially useful when fine-tuning your own pricing to remain competitive within each market.

Information about your target audience’s budgets and spending patterns can help guide you on which products and services you can promote most successfully, as well as identify where there is increased demand for specific price points on products and services. For example, if you offer swimming pools, luxury designs, or other services that are in higher demand by upscale homeowners, then you can use construction permit data to find the areas where higher value construction is abundant. On the other hand, you may find areas where values and construction budgets are on the lower end of the scale; in this case, positioning your line of services and products that cater to durability and affordability will benefit your marketing efforts.

As a construction professional, you have many options for reaching your target audience, but if you don’t reach them with information that speaks directly to their needs, your message can quickly fall into the background. For this reason, using permit data to better position your company will enable you to present products and services that are tailored to each unique market and customer, ensuring that your company is front and center and top-of-mind with your prospects.

For more information on construction business marketing tips, stay connected with the HBW Blog.  To get ahead of construction activity and gain access to the latest permitting data in Florida, Texas, Georgia, Alabama and Oklahoma, contact HBW for more information on construction data reports and industry leads.

Top Pool Builders in Florida – November 2022

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A review of leading pool contractors in Florida during the month of November

As reported on the HBW blog earlier this week, there were more than 1,860 new swimming pool construction permits with a total value of approximately $126 million added to the HBW database for Florida during the month of November 2022. Today, we are taking a deeper dive into HBW’s construction data reports to identify the leading contractors that were driving new swimming pool construction in each of the five major regions of Florida last month.

Based on HBW’s latest reports, the pool builders with the greatest number of new swimming pool construction permits on record in Florida for the month of November are as follows:

Tampa

Out of the approximately 130 active contractors with new swimming pool construction on record with HBW in the Tampa area last month, the following ranked as the top five for total new permits:

BuilderTotal Permits Average Value
1-Bob’s Pool Service67 $    20,075.00
2-Challenger Pools18 $  106,747.00
3-Staycation Pools17 $    35,000.00
4-Tampa Bay Pools13 $    92,669.00
5-Larry Bosse Jr. Pools12 $    59,833.00

Southwest

Last month, there were nearly 160 contractors with new swimming pool construction on record with HBW in the southwestern region of Florida, and the following ranked as the top five for total new permits for the one-month period:

BuilderTotal Permits Average Value
1-Pinnacle USA46 $    55,304.00
2-Waterscapes Pools & Spas32 $    51,807.00
3-Trusted Pool & Spa22 $    81,432.00
4-Contemporary Pools22 $    75,800.00
5-Coast to Coast Pools22 $    45,917.00

Southeast

In the southeastern region of Florida, there were more than 155 pool contractors with new construction activity on record with HBW last month, and the following ranked as the top five for total new permits:

BuilderTotal Permits Average Value
1-AAA Custom Pools24 $    46,390.00
2-A&G Concrete Pools23 $    73,734.00
3-Endless Summer Pools of Florida12 $    77,936.00
4-Pool Builders12 $    62,628.00
5-Liberty Pools11 $    91,613.00

Orlando

Last month, there were nearly 85 contractors with new swimming pool construction on record in the Orlando area, and the following ranked as the top five for total new permits:

BuilderTotal Permits Average Value
1-Bob’s Pool Service25 $    27,152.00
2-Dreamscapes Pools & Spas23 $    52,609.00
3-All Seasons21 $    71,736.00
4-American Pools & Spas21 $    57,812.00
5-Holland Pools14 $    51,886.00

Jacksonville

In Jacksonville, there were 60 contractors with new pool construction on record with HBW last month, and the following ranked as the top five for total new permits during the one-month period:

BuilderTotal Permits Average Value
1-Agua Pools & Spas15 $    91,733.00
2-Blue Haven Pools9 $    82,143.00
3-Epic Pools & Hardscape Construction8 $    90,601.00
4-Pools by John Clarkson7 $  127,774.00
5-Amelia Outdoors7 $    61,714.00

To gain more information on the builders, homeowners and permits for the construction activity above, check out HBW for your copy of the latest construction data reports. To gain access to the HBW database and receive custom and detailed reports on the latest residential and commercial building activity in Florida, Georgia, Texas, Alabama, and Oklahoma, please contact HBW for details.

Florida Swimming Pool Construction Report – November 2022

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A review of permit data for new swimming pool construction across the Sunshine State during the month of November

Based on the latest construction data reports from HBW, there were more than 1,860 new swimming pool construction permits with a total value of approximately $126 million added to the HBW database for Florida during the month of November 2022.  The report factored in all new swimming pool construction permits from five major regions of the state (Southwest, Tampa, Orlando, Southeast, Jacksonville), and out of the regions reviewed, the southwestern region carried the greatest volume of new swimming pool construction (629 permits), while the highest average value of construction could be found in Jacksonville (average value: $87,890).

Here is a closer look at the total new permits, construction values and leading counties with the greatest concentration of new swimming pool construction last month:

Southwest

In the southwest, there were 629 new swimming pool construction permits with a total value in excess of $40 million last month.  The average value of new swimming pool construction was lowest in the southwest (average value: $63,781) in comparison to other Florida regions reviewed, and 54 percent of all new construction took place in the counties of Lee (180 permits) and Collier (159 permits).

Tampa

In Tampa, there were approximately 415 new pool permits with a total construction value of nearly $28.3 million last month.  The average value of new pool construction was $67,994, and more than half of all new permits originated from the counties of Hillsborough (88 permits) and Polk (131 permits).

Southeast

Ranked #3 for new pool construction in Florida, the southeastern region had 395 new permits with a total construction value of approximately $26.7 million on record last month.  The average value of construction was $67,524, and the counties with the highest concentration of new pool construction activity during the one-month period were Palm Beach (146 permits) and Miami-Dade (83 permits).

Orlando

Last month, there were more than 270 new swimming pool construction permits with a total value of nearly $17.6 million in the Orlando area.  The average value of construction was $64,845, and approximately 65 percent of all new swimming pool construction activity took place in the counties of Orange (119 permits) and Brevard (57 permits).

Jacksonville

In Jacksonville, there were more than 150 new pool permits with a total construction value of approximately $13.3 million last month.  The average value of new pool construction was highest in Jacksonville (average value: $87,890) in comparison to other Florida regions, and the bulk of all new permits originated from the two counties of St. Johns (66 permits) and Duval (34 permits).

To gain more information on the builders, homeowners and permits for the construction activity above, check out HBW for your copy of the latest construction data reports. To gain access to the HBW database and receive custom and detailed reports on the latest residential and commercial building activity in Florida, Georgia, Texas, Alabama, and Oklahoma, please contact HBW for details.

Regional Spotlight: Southwest Florida Construction – November 2022

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An overview of new swimming pool and home construction permit data for the southwestern region of Florida during the month of November 2022

If you have been following the HBW blog, then you are already aware of how Southwest Florida has and continues to be a hot spot for new construction. Month after month the region is positioned at the top of leaderboard out of the five regions regularly reviewed (Southwest, Tampa, Orlando, Southeast, Jacksonville) for both new home and new swimming pool construction.

With the help of HBW’s construction data reports, we were able to identify and isolate areas across the Sunshine State where new permitting activity levels are on a high, and the result for the southwestern regions is as follows:

New Home Construction

During the month of November, there were more than 1,500 new residential construction permits with a total value of nearly $488.3 million added to the HBW database for Southwest Florida; this figure represents more than 30 percent of all new permits added to the HBW database statewide during the one-month period.

From the five counties that make up the area, nearly 60 percent of all new construction took place in the two counties of Sarasota and Lee where there were 460 and 435 new permits respectively, and out of the 270 home builders that pulled new permits in the area last month, the following ranked as the top five for total new permits on record with HBW for the month November:

BuilderTotal PermitsAverage Value
1-Pulte Homes174$227,879
2-Lennar Homes160$268,350
3-D.R. Horton152$199,624
4-Neal Communities of SW FL67$249,437
5-Mattamy Homes50$389,647

New Swimming Pool Construction

Last month, there were approximately 630 new swimming pool construction permits with a total value in excess of $40 million accounted for in the southwestern region of Florida; this figure ranked the area as #1 for new pool construction out of the five regions reviewed. From the five counties in the area, the bulk of new pool construction took place in Lee (180 permits) and Collier (159 permits), and out of the more than 155 pool builders with new construction activity on record for the month, the following ranked as the top five for total new permits:

BuilderTotal PermitsAverage Value
1-Pinnacle USA46$55,304
2-Waterscapes Pools & Spas32$51,807
3-Trusted Pool & Spa22$81,432
4-Contemporary Pools22$75,800
5-Coast to Coast Pools22$45,917

To gain more information on the builders, homeowners and permits for the construction activity above, check out HBW for your copy of the latest construction data reports. To gain access to the HBW database and receive custom and detailed reports on the latest residential and commercial building activity in Florida, Georgia, Texas, Alabama, and Oklahoma, please contact HBW for details.

HBW Report: Texas Swimming Pool Construction – November 2022

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An overview of permit data on record with HBW for new swimming pool construction in Texas during the month of November

Last month, there were more than 620 new swimming pool construction permits with a total value of nearly $35.3 million added to the HBW database for Texas.

When reviewing construction figures from Texas, reports were pulled from the four major metro areas of Dallas, Houston, Austin, and San Antonio. Out of the four regions reviewed, Dallas (263 permits) carried the greatest amount of new pool construction activity, while the lowest levels of new construction took place in San Antonio (58 permits).

When reviewing the reports to identify the average value of new swimming pool construction across the Lone Star State, the Houston area was a standout with the highest average value of new pool construction (average value: $70,611), while the lowest average value of new swimming pool construction could be found in San Antonio (average value: $46,950):

From a county-by-county perspective, nearly 45 percent of all new swimming pool construction permits originated from three major counties across the state; those counties are as follows:

#1 – Harris County (Houston) – 133 permits

#2 – Collin County (Dallas) – 71 permits

#3 – Travis County (Austin) – 71 permits

Finally, when utilizing HBW’s construction data reports to identify the leading contractors that have been driving new pool construction across the state last month, it is clear that the leaderboard varies widely based on geographic location. Here is a quick look at the #1 pool builder in each of the four regions reviewed based on the total number of permits pulled during the one-month period:

  1. Dallas: Foley Custom Pools (14 permits)
  2. Houston: Platinum Pools (19 permits)
  3. Austin: Cody Pools (11 permits)
  4. San Antonio: Keith Zars Pools (9 permits)

To gain more information on the builders, homeowners and permits for the construction activity above, check out HBW for your copy of the latest construction data reports. To gain access to the HBW database and receive custom and detailed reports on the latest residential and commercial building activity in Florida, Georgia, Texas, Alabama, and Oklahoma, please contact HBW for details.

Improving Your Marketing Strategy in 2023

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A few areas to review and consider as you tighten your marketing strategy for the new year

Last month, we reviewed a few (five to be exact) tips for boosting your holiday marketing efforts. And while the holidays are an opportune time to reach your target audience with the services and products that are at the top of their wish lists, the coming year will offer opportunities for expanding your reach and making meaningful connections with your current and future customers.

By now, you should already have a solid marketing strategy and plan in place for 2023, but it’s never too late to take another quick review of it to make sure that you have everything covered. For this reason, here are a few areas to consider in order to meet some of the basics for marketing success:

  1. Website – This one may seem obvious, but creating a website is not enough to get noticed. Take a little extra time to update copyright dates, team members, service items – really anything that may have changed or been added in the last year. Is your contact information visible? Are all links still functioning? Review every page for accuracy and remove or revise any outdated information.
  2. SEO – If you are not familiar with “SEO”, now would be a good to time to learn more about how it can benefit you. SEO is an important piece of your digital marketing strategy – SEO stands for “Search Engine Optimization,” and it simply means the process of improving your site to increase its visibility when people search for your products/services. How are things looking on the backend of your website? Do your keywords and metadata reflect the latest, greatest, and most popular search combinations? By taking a little time to review and update your text, meta description tags, title tags, and keywords, you can increase your visibility for people who will be searching for your services.
  3. Get Social – If you are not active on social media, there is no time like the new year to start. That being stated, you should be careful in choosing the platforms where you will be establishing pages/profiles. You will need to make informed decisions about how many profiles you can maintain successfully, and who will be managing posts and content. While many people make social media look easy, it is a time-consuming process if done correctly, and it requires thoughtful consideration of your audience, the type of content that is best for each platform, and how to effectively represent your brand. If you already have a well-established presence on social media, it is always good to review your strategy and measure the success of previous social media marketing campaigns to map out and modify your plan for the coming year.
  4. Secure Reliable Leads – To keep business moving forward, you will need to cultivate and generate leads. Your sales team can always benefit from new prospects, and the growth of your business relies on new customers. For this reason, it is vital that you secure a method for attaining fresh leads. Services such as HBW, take the guess work out of lead generation by providing real data for the latest construction permits, as well as archived information to find clients who will need renovations and updates to their homes and properties.
  5. Amp up Email – Just because social media has become a dominant player in the marketing game does not mean that email is gone for good. Actually, email marketing is still alive and kicking and it can be a great way to connect to those who are not on social media, as well as reinforce your message to those who stay connected with you in other places. What type of content gained the most “opens” and “clicks” in the previous year? During which dates/times was your audience most receptive? Are you emailing your audience too often, or not enough? There is much to be considered when making improvements to your email marketing campaigns, and often your email will help you build a following in other areas. Additionally, you should be exploring more ways to collect email addresses and build your list. Along with leads from HBW, you can invite new subscribers through partner sites, social media, and by offering valuable resources such as reports and whitepapers.

While the above listed areas are just a few of many to consider when developing a top-notch marketing strategy, your business (and sales team) will benefit from dedicating time to review and improve your current marketing plan to make 2023 a year of growth.

For more information on construction business marketing tips, stay connected with the HBW Blog.  To get ahead of construction activity and gain access to the latest permitting data in Florida, Texas, Georgia, Alabama and Oklahoma, contact HBW for more information on construction data reports and industry leads.

Texas Top Home Builders – November 2022

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A summary of the leading contractors for new home construction in Texas during the month of November 2022

Last week, we reported that there were there were more than 3,630 new residential construction permits with a total value of nearly $1.1 billion added to the HBW database for Texas during the month of November. Today, we will take a deeper dive into HBW records to identify the top home builders that are responsible for driving new construction during the one-month period.

Across the state, and from the four major metro areas reviewed (Dallas, Houston, Austin, San Antonio), there were two builders that carried more than 27 percent of all new home construction for the month. Based on HBW’s construction data reports, the highest concentration of new permits were held by the following companies:

  1. Lennar Homes – 521 permits
  2. D.R. Horton – 464 permits

Dallas

BuilderTotal Permits Average Value
1-D.R. Horton203 $      241,133.00
2-Lennar Homes155 $      222,102.00
3-Bloomfield Homes56 $      361,771.00
4-First Texas Homes54 $      545,809.00
5-Pulte Homes37 $      286,359.00

Houston

BuilderTotal Permits Average Value
1-Lennar Homes199 $      165,860.00
2-D.R. Horton197 $      215,771.00
3-Camillo Properties107 $      180,913.00
4-Meritage Homes76 $      257,222.00
5-Perry Homes52 $      406,153.00

Austin

BuilderTotal Permits Average Value
1-Lennar Homes136 $      228,820.00
2-D.R. Horton63 $      191,040.00
3-Chesmar Homes32 $      471,907.00
4-Taylor Morrison Homes31 $      470,610.00
5-Brookfield Residential Texas Homes30 $      286,260.00

San Antonio

BuilderTotal Permits Average Value
1-Wes Peoples Homes39 $  200,000.00
2-Lennar Homes31 $  154,537.00
3-Perry Homes26 $  441,169.00
4-Hakes Brothers25 $  243,060.00
5-Rausch Coleman Homes11 $  135,580.00

To gain more information on the builders, homeowners and permits for the construction activity above, check out HBW for your copy of the latest construction data reports. To gain access to the HBW database and receive custom and detailed reports on the latest residential and commercial building activity in Florida, Georgia, Texas, Alabama, and Oklahoma, please contact HBW for details.

Texas New Home Construction Review – November 2022

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An overview of permit data for new residential construction in Texas during the month of November

Based on HBW’s latest construction data reports, there were more than 3,630 new residential construction permits with a total value of nearly $1.1 billion added to the HBW database for the Lone Star State last month.

Out of the four areas reviewed (Dallas, Houston, Austin, San Antonio), Houston carried the greatest volume of housing starts (1,575 permits), while the highest average value of new home construction could be found in the Dallas area (average value: $330,793).

Here is a breakdown of permit data for new residential construction in each of the four major metro regions of Texas last month:

Houston

As previously noted, Houston carried the highest amount of new residential construction last month, having 1,575 new permits with a total construction value of nearly $410 million.  The average value of new home construction (average value: $260,096) landed on the lower end of the spectrum in comparison to other Texas areas reviewed, and nearly all of the new permits originated from the counties of Harris (851 permits) and Montgomery (455 permits).

Dallas

In Dallas, there were approximately 1,245 new residential construction permits with a total value of $411.5 million last.  The average value of new home construction was highest in Dallas (average value: $330,793) in comparison to other Texas areas reviewed, and the counties with the greatest amount of new residential construction activity for the one-month period were Collin (361 permits) and Tarrant County (318 permits).

Austin

Last month, there were more than 545 new residential construction permits with a total value of approximately $179 million in the Austin area.  The average value of new home construction landed on the higher end of the spectrum in Austin (average value: $327,472) compared to other areas reviewed, and nearly half of all new residential construction permits originated from Travis County (260 permits).

San Antonio

In San Antonio, there were more than 265 new permits with a total construction value in excess of $67.2 million last month.  The average value of new home construction was lowest in the San Antonio area (average value: $251,728) in comparison to the other Texas areas reviewed, and the county with the highest concentration of new home construction activity was Bexar where there were approximately 120 new permits during the one-month period.

To gain more information on the builders, homeowners and permits for the construction activity above, check out HBW for your copy of the latest construction data reports. To gain access to the HBW database and receive custom and detailed reports on the latest residential and commercial building activity in Florida, Georgia, Texas, Alabama, and Oklahoma, please contact HBW for details.