Apr 1 2019

Video: NAHB Chairman Updates Members on Key Priorities

In the latest installment of his monthly video series, NAHB Chairman Greg Ugalde outlines two recent examples of NAHB working hard for its members: his testimony on Capitol Hill on GSE reform, and the NAHB Housing Portal which can save members thousands in survey research to help their businesses.

This monthly video series will highlight how the association is addressing key issues impacting members and delivering results that make a difference to their businesses’ bottom lines.

View all of the videos in the series at nahb.org/chairmans-update, and watch the latest one below:

Click here for video.

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Recent News

Apr 1 2019

How to Make Social Media Work for Your Business

Personal acquaintances and client referrals are typically the most reliable sources of leads for builders and remodelers. The premise of social media doesn’t change this. But when used effectively, it can give the lead-generating process a boost.

Social media is another way to build relationships with potential buyers, partners, vendors, and even policymakers and media. Use NAHB to help you reach your target audience and begin building those relationships.

Instagram – Best targets: First-time home buyers or remodelers

You can get your brand and project pictures in front of NAHB’s rapidly growing consumer following on Instagram for free as part of your membership. If you already have an Instagram account, just follow @homebuilders, and tag us in the pictures that you would like us to share.

If you don’t have an Instagram account, you can submit your photos and a short description of the project at nahb.org/photos. Either way, be sure to include the Instagram handle for other key people or companies that were involved in the project, along with photo credits. Also, it’s important that the photos are high quality.

For questions on Instagram and marketing to consumers, contact Camilo Cuba.

Facebook – Best targets: Home buyers and other home building businesses

Facebook has NAHB’s largest social media audience, and it’s primarily comprised of NAHB members, HBAs and consumers. Like and follow the NAHB Facebook page to get started. Also, consider joining an NAHB group on Facebook.

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Mar 26 2019

Crapo’s Housing Finance Reform Plan Moves the Debate Forward

NAHB today commended Senate Banking Committee Chairman Mike Crapo for developing his housing finance reform proposal and believes it will serve as an important marker to move the debate forward in Congress.

Testifying on this issue before the Senate Banking Committee, NAHB Chairman Greg Ugalde said that an effective housing finance system must address liquidity as well as affordability.

“An essential component of any strategy for housing affordability must be advancing comprehensive housing finance reform which will ensure the capital and liquidity necessary for housing developers, builders, lenders and consumers to access stable financing,” said Ugalde.

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Mar 22 2019

Builders Report Labor Shortages as Top Challenge in 2019

More than four out of five builders expect to face serious challenges regarding the cost and availability of labor in 2019, according to a recent survey of members that ran in the monthly NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index.

The questions asked builders about the problems they confronted in 2018 and expect to face in 2019. Topping the list is the cost and availability of labor, a significant issue for 82% of builders in 2018, which ranked as the No. 2 concern behind building material prices. An identical 82% expect labor shortages will be their No. 1 issue in 2019, while material prices fell to the second slot at 69%.

A chronic labor shortage in the housing industry is a problem that has been steadily gaining steam over the past few years. To put it into perspective, just 13% of builders cited labor issues as an important concern in 2011, with the rate steadily rising over the ensuing years and peaking at 82% in each of the last three years (2017-2019).

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Uncategorized

Mar 13 2019

One More Hour Per Day

By: Dr. Donald E. Wetmore

We all have 24 hours in our day, 7 days per week. And if you multiply that out, and my math is correct (I think it is because I’ve done the calculation a few times before!), that totals 168 hours per week.

No more. No less.

And the truth about time is that it can only be spent. It cannot be saved. (Did you ever have any time left over on a Sunday that you were able to use the following week?) And there’s only two ways to spend our time; wisely, or, not so wisely.

Our time is spent on “have to’s” and “want to’s.” Our time, like our money, can either be “spent” and it’s gone, or “invested,” and like seeds in the ground, will return abundance back to us in the future. Good Time Management is budgeting some of our time for “investing,” learning how to do it better and more effectively. “If you always do what you’ve always done, you always get what you’ve always got.”

It’s a good goal to improve on the entire twenty-four hours in our day, but just for now, think about improving on just one hour per day. If we can gain one additional hour per day either by doing what we already do, but do it more effectively or do something new, the payback will be enormous as we enjoy the “multiplier effect” of that savings.

A person making $50,000 per year who is wasting just one hour per day, five hours per week, or 250 hours per year, is creating a minimum loss of productivity valued at $6,250 per year. To be able to recapture that time and use it more effectively creates an annual return of 250 more productive hours or over 6 “free” workweeks during the next year.

“A problem well defined is 95% solved.” To recover some of your lost time, you need to know where your time is going. I recommend preparing a Time Log. Nothing fancy about this, just take a pad of paper and make a heading, “Time Log.” As you complete each major task or spend a chunk of time, log it in on your list. Note the date and time, what you did, the length of time it took, and the rating: A=Crucial, B=Important, C=Little Value and D=No Value.

Run this for 3-5 days, as a shorter period may give you a distorted sense of what is really happening. Then analyze the results and almost always we will find chunks of time wasters that you can control and reduce. Your savings may come from reducing unnecessary meetings, delegating more effectively, reducing interruptions, planning better, etc.

Would you like to receive free Timely Time Management Tips on a regular basis to increase your personal productivity and get more out of every day? Sign up for your free “Timely Time Management Tips” newsletter at our website: https://www.balancetime.com

Dr. Donald E. Wetmore
Certified Executive Coach, Consultant and Trainer
Author, “Organizing Your Life” and “The Productivity Handbook”
Productivity Institute
Personal Productivity Solutions to Leverage Your Impact
127 Jefferson St.
Stratford, CT 06615
(203) 386-8062
(800) 969-3773
info@balancetime.com
https://www.balancetime.com
Follow me on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/timemanagement
Follow me on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/timeguy

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Feb 7 2019

Statement from NAHB First Vice Chairman Greg Ugalde on President Trump’s State of the Union Address

Greg Ugalde, first vice chairman of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) and a builder and developer from Torrington, Conn., attended tonight’s State of the Union address and issued the following statement regarding President Trump’s remarks:

“NAHB commends President Trump for highlighting the need for large-scale nationwide investment in infrastructure that is vital to build strong communities and a thriving housing market. Homeownership and housing are essential to a strong and prosperous nation. Yet, new research by Freddie Mac shows that America’s home builders are constructing 370,000 fewer units annually than needed to satisfy demand.

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Jan 28 2019

Trump Announces Deal to Reopen Government for 3 Weeks

President Trump today announced a deal with congressional leaders to reopen the federal government for three weeks while talks continue on his demand for a border wall.

NAHB Chairman Randy Noel issued the following statement regarding this important development:

“NAHB commends President Trump and congressional leaders for working together to reopen the government for three weeks while they tackle the issue of border security. At a time when the nation is facing a growing housing affordability crisis, the shutdown has exacerbated the situation by disrupting funding for important HUD housing programs. It is vitally important that Congress and the White House come to an agreement on securing our southern border to ensure the federal government remains open indefinitely.”

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Recent News

Jan 14 2019

Developers, Not Farmers, Get Biggest Hit From Wetlands Rule

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump often points to farmers as among the biggest winners from the administration's proposed rollback of federal protections for wetlands and waterways across the country.

But under longstanding federal law and rules, farmers and farmland already are exempt from most of the regulatory hurdles on behalf of wetlands that the Trump administration is targeting. Because of that, environmental groups long have argued that builders, oil and gas drillers and other industry owners would be the big winners if the government adopts the pending rollback, making it easier to fill in bogs, creeks and streams for plowing, drilling, mining or building.

Government numbers released last month support that argument.

Real estate developers and those in other business sectors take out substantially more permits than farmers for projects impinging on wetlands, creeks, and streams, and who stand to reap the biggest regulatory and financial relief from the Trump administration's rollback of wetlands protections.

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Dec 21 2018

NAHB Urges Congress to Act on Housing Finance Reform

NAHB today commended House Financial Services Committee Chairman Jeb Hensarling (R-Texas) for working with lawmakers across the political aisle to develop a legislative framework to move housing finance reform forward.

“We support many aspects of the Bipartisan Housing Finance Reform Act of 2018, and are especially pleased that the draft legislation includes an explicit government backstop that assures market participants that the federal government will maintain stability, keep credit flowing and make investors whole in catastrophic circumstances,” NAHB CEO Jerry Howard said in testimony before the House Financial Services Committee.

“NAHB believes an explicit federal government guaranty is particularly important to the continued availability of the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage, which has been a staple of the U.S. housing finance system since the 1930s, and we appreciate that the preservation of the 30-year mortgage is emphasized in this draft bill,” Howard added.