Wall Street Journal: "'The current housing slump is making remodeling a kitchen or bathroom or adding an addition easier and cheaper. Sluggish home-building demand is pushing down the cost of construction materials (prices for lumber are near their lowest level in a decade) and spurring contractors to take on smaller projects, and sometimes cut fees."
"Custom and speculative builders are also starting to take on renovation jobs, picking up work they may have passed over just a year ago."
"In Tucson, Ariz., Richard Fink, a custom home builder, used to do a few remodeling jobs as favors to former clients; now remodeling has grown to half his business. Samm Jernigan, a high-end custom home builder in Wilmington, N.C., said earlier this year he started 'aggressively pursuing' remodeling projects for the first time, and John Diament, a home builder outside of Philadelphia, says two months ago he started asking architects to send big remodeling jobs his way."
"'It's good news for the consumer if you've got a lot more people seeking projects,' says Gopal Ahluwalia, for the National Association of Home Builders."
"Meanwhile, prices of framing lumber have fallen dramatically, says Shawn Church, the editor of an industry newsletter. The composite price per thousand board feet of framing lumber was $274 this week, compared with $375 a year earlier. Ken Simonson, the chief economist for the Associated General Contractors of America, says he expects to see a roughly 10 percent drop in prices of gypsum and construction plastics when government price data are released later this month."
"The falloff is largely because of slowing new-home construction, which for several years had driven up the cost of materials. Growth in spending on remodeling has also slowed recently, a result of rising interest rates and homeowners who have postponed selling, along with presale renovations."
"The new environment means that homeowners are more likely to find contractors willing to take on projects quickly. 'Rather than saying ‘call me next spring,' they'll be more likely to say 'I'll be over this week to the talk about the project,’ says Kermit Baker, at the Harvard Joint Center."
"Contractor Don Sever in Oakton, Va., says he sees interest in remodeling starting to ease. He has trimmed prices by about 5 percent to attract more business. 'People are much more cautious about spending that home-equity money,' he says."
"When Bruce Ash wanted to do a large-scale renovation at his Tucson home, he found Mr. Fink of Becklin Construction to take on the $700,000 project. 'Normally, the market has been such that we could never get custom builders to remodel homes, but now, they are interested,' says Mr. Ash, a real-estate manager."
Keep ConstructionDeal.com in mind for your next remodeling project! It's a fast, free and easy way to find a renovation contractor. Simply submit your request and get 4 quotes from qualified remodeling companies. Now is the time to save big money on your home improvement project.
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"Custom and speculative builders are also starting to take on renovation jobs, picking up work they may have passed over just a year ago."
"In Tucson, Ariz., Richard Fink, a custom home builder, used to do a few remodeling jobs as favors to former clients; now remodeling has grown to half his business. Samm Jernigan, a high-end custom home builder in Wilmington, N.C., said earlier this year he started 'aggressively pursuing' remodeling projects for the first time, and John Diament, a home builder outside of Philadelphia, says two months ago he started asking architects to send big remodeling jobs his way."
"'It's good news for the consumer if you've got a lot more people seeking projects,' says Gopal Ahluwalia, for the National Association of Home Builders."
"Meanwhile, prices of framing lumber have fallen dramatically, says Shawn Church, the editor of an industry newsletter. The composite price per thousand board feet of framing lumber was $274 this week, compared with $375 a year earlier. Ken Simonson, the chief economist for the Associated General Contractors of America, says he expects to see a roughly 10 percent drop in prices of gypsum and construction plastics when government price data are released later this month."
"The falloff is largely because of slowing new-home construction, which for several years had driven up the cost of materials. Growth in spending on remodeling has also slowed recently, a result of rising interest rates and homeowners who have postponed selling, along with presale renovations."
"The new environment means that homeowners are more likely to find contractors willing to take on projects quickly. 'Rather than saying ‘call me next spring,' they'll be more likely to say 'I'll be over this week to the talk about the project,’ says Kermit Baker, at the Harvard Joint Center."
"Contractor Don Sever in Oakton, Va., says he sees interest in remodeling starting to ease. He has trimmed prices by about 5 percent to attract more business. 'People are much more cautious about spending that home-equity money,' he says."
"When Bruce Ash wanted to do a large-scale renovation at his Tucson home, he found Mr. Fink of Becklin Construction to take on the $700,000 project. 'Normally, the market has been such that we could never get custom builders to remodel homes, but now, they are interested,' says Mr. Ash, a real-estate manager."
Keep ConstructionDeal.com in mind for your next remodeling project! It's a fast, free and easy way to find a renovation contractor. Simply submit your request and get 4 quotes from qualified remodeling companies. Now is the time to save big money on your home improvement project.
Bookmark or subscribe to this blog to keep up to date on the latest remodeling information!
