July 1st, 2008Going Green Series: Green Building: This month, we continue our look at what it means to “go green” and protect the environment. In this report, KSMU’s Missy Shelton talks with local builders about green homes and the demand from buyers for green homes.Meet Scott Kisling, president and owner of Uptight Construction, Incorporated. He’s a certified green builder.Kisling also looks at ways to get some life out of used materials.There’s often a cost to going green. Kisling says using insulated concrete forms to make homes more energy efficient comes with a cost.Kisling’s own home is made with insulated concrete forms, something you’d never suspect just by looking at it. And he says he’s seen tremendous savings on his energy bill.As good as that might sound to homeowners looking to cut back on their energy costs, energy efficient features and other green building features are just starting to catch on in the Ozarks.Matt Morrow is Executive Director of the Home Builders Association of Greater Springfield.People have heard of going green but may not know exactly what that means, especially as it relates to homebuilding.Morrow refers to recent research done for the HBA.Since there is some confusion about what green building is all about, Morrow offers a definition.And in a tight housing market, those can be important selling points.Brett Godfrey is president of Built by Brett, Incorporated and is building green homes like this one in south Springfield.For homes that are going on the market (in other words, they’re not custom homes), builders have to make some tough choices: how many energy efficient and green features to include in the home. Godfrey says it’s a question he has to tackle.Godfrey and other home builders in the area are banking on homebuyers being enticed to hand over more green for features that are green.
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Guest Column: Research data answers common housing questions In an uncertain housing market, perhaps the most common questions I hear are: “How’s the housing market?” and “What does the future hold?” Our residential construction market was a moving target in 2007. In 2008, new challenges (and opportunities) for area home builders have presented themselves. In today’s market, many builders are liberated to innovate. Rather than giving masses of buyers no reason not to buy, builders in certain price range are seeking ways to differentiate their homes from the others on the block. The goal is no longer universality; it is distinction. In a buyer’s market, spec builders must capture the imagination of that one particular buyer who has looked at too many homes that appear too alike. And the builders I talk to relish the challenge. | |
While considerable national research exists regarding consumer confidence, home buying trends and home building niches, precious little local data is available. Yet we know that every local housing market is unique, with its own distinctive characteristics and dynamics. That is why the Home Builders Association of Greater Springfield this year contracted to gather, analyze and distribute an unprecedented level of highly relevant local market information to HBA members. This comprehensive research project (findings are being released publicly for the first time in this issue of SBJ, see page 11) included two quantitative opinion poll/surveys of the local housing market, and a series of demographically specific focus groups.
We are gaining valuable insight into the consumer preferences, trends, obstacles, and motivators that affect the housing decisions made right here in the Springfield-Branson region. Our findings give those in the housing industry a better opportunity to make wise business decisions and help guide HBA marketing and public education decisions as the voice of the residential construction and remodeling industries. This project helps us answer questions about what the future holds.
But what about that other question about the state of the housing market?
The best source of information on the subject today is tracked and maintained by the Greater Springfield Board of Realtors. The board is the authority on sales and listing information, and they have done a remarkable job. But aside from their exceptional work, little useful information exists on our economy’s housing and construction sectors.
It is remarkable that no regional, area-wide clearinghouse of construction data exists. Select municipalities and counties track housing starts and permits, but most do not. In most of the region, building permits aren’t even issued, much less counted and tracked. In those areas that do track such information, there is little consistency in methodology.
The HBA is partnering with the Ozarks Regional Economic Partnership to conduct an areawide comprehensive construction economic data research project. Data is being gathered, sorted and analyzed, providing valuable market tracking for housing starts, commercial building permits, remodeling permits, approved rezoning applications, etc. for our entire 10-county service area: Polk, Dallas, Dade, Lawrence, Greene, Webster, Christian, Stone, Taney and Barry counties.
This is an enormous undertaking, but once completed, this research project will allow our members and others to analyze what parts of the Ozarks have been experiencing the largest building booms and where construction has slowed.
We will fill an important information void in the region’s economic development landscape. Builders and developers can use this information (when paired with the Board of Realtors’ established housing sales and inventory data) to forecast where the next attractive business opportunity lies.
Matt Morrow is executive officer of the Home Builders Association of Greater Springfield. He can be reached at mmorrow@springfieldhba.com.
2008 Parade of Homes builds on variety
The Home Builders Association of Greater Springfield has been showcasing homes for more than 50 years through the annual Parade of Homes, but this year, variety is the key.
The 2008 Parade of Homes, slated for 1–6 p.m. June 20–22 and June 27–29, features 27 homes from Marshfield to Blue Eye, with prices ranging from $145,000 to $950,000. Click here for a guide to the parade, complete with photos, descriptions and directions for each stop.
“This is probably the parade that covers the most area,” said HBA Operations Manager Charlyce Ruth. “And it’s probably our largest price range of homes.”
The fact that there are so many homes on the market isn’t necessarily a reflection of slowed market conditions, Ruth said.
“More than half (of the parade homes) are already sold, and two already have home-owners living in them,” she said. “Everybody knows the numbers are down, but we’re still a strong area. Our builders are still working hard, and they’re still building and remodeling beautiful homes.”
Longtime HBA member Trent Cowherd of Cowherd Construction is a first-time Parade of Homes participant this year, showing a home in Republic that has nearly 2,000 square feet and is priced at $189,900.
He said he participated in a spring showcase about 10 years ago and got quite a bit of exposure. With additional inventory this year, he decided it was the right time to participate in the parade.
“We think we can show a lot of house for the dollar,” Cowherd said.
Something almost new
While remodeled homes have appeared in previous parades, two on this year’s route are unusual because of their proximity to downtown.
Both remodeled entries are in the West Central Neighborhood and are the work of Jack Pugh and David Rhodes of B’s Renaissance Renovations.
One of the homes was built in the 1890s, Pugh said, but it’s completely new in almost every way.
“We tried to do something that’s both new and fresh, but also pays tribute to the roots,” Pugh said.
Parade versus fuel costs
Ruth said it’s difficult to judge how the combination of higher gas prices and an expanded parade route will affect turnout, but she doesn’t expect much impact.
She said the HBA gets phone calls asking about the parade as early as January, and she’s heard of at least three people who come from out of state, from as far away as Colorado and Florida, planning their vacations around the parade.
