Industry News

 

Number of Improving Housing Markets Nearly Doubles in January
January 16, 2012 - WASHINGTON -- The number of housing markets showing measurable improvement nearly doubled in January with the addition of 40 new metros to the National Association of Home Builders/First American Improving Markets Index (IMI), released this month... Read full story

 

ProBuild Names Robert Marchbank CEO
January 16, 2012 - DENVER, CO -- ProBuild Holdings Inc., one of the nation's largest professional building materials suppliers, announced Robert Marchbank has been appointed chief executive officer. Fred Marino, who had served as interim CEO for the past several months, will continue to serve as vice chairman of the Company's Board of Directors... Read full story

 

AHMA Confidence Index Declined in December
January 15, 2012 - SCHAUMBURG, IL -- The American Hardware Manufacturers Association's AHMA Home Improvement Industry Confidence Index's Current Situation Index declined in December to 229.2 from 266.7 in November, while the Future Expectations Index also fell to 241.1 from 262.1... Read full story

 

New Harvard Book Concludes Greater Efficiencies Possible in American Home Building
January 15, 2012 - A newly published book from researchers at Harvard's Joint Center for Housing Studies concludes that improving efficiency has not been a big priority for the nation's homebuilders. The book, entitled Bigger Isn't Necessarily Better: Lessons from the Harvard Home Builder Study, is based a detailed survey of large homebuilders... Read full story

 

New How-To Videos from Dunn-Edwards Provide Painting Tips from the Pros
January 15, 2012 - LOS ANGELES, CA -- Dunn-Edwards Paints has launched a series of 10 how-to videos about painting that will help ensure success for homeowners. For those planning to hire a painting contractor, they'll find topics like How to Choose Paint Colors, Selecting the Right Gloss and How to Care for Your Painted Walls & Touching-up to be helpful... Read full story

 

World of Concrete January 23-27, 2012 in Las Vegas, NV
January 15, 2012 - The Annual World of Concrete trade show is scheduled for January 24-27, 2012 at the Las Vegas Convention Center. The show, run by HanleyWood Exhibitions, is dedicated to the commercial concrete and masonry construction industries, and will feature all the newest products and techniques, as well as informative educational seminars... Read full story

 

AWCI's Convention + Intex Expo April 15-19, 2012 in Charlotte, NC
January 15, 2012 - The Association of the Wall and Ceiling Industry (AWCI) will host its annual convention, along with the Intex Expo April 15-19, 2012 at the Charlotte Convention Center in Charlotte, NC. The show promises to feature all the great new products and reputable vendors who can help propel your wall and ceiling business to new heights in 2012... Read full story

 

Weyerhaeuser Enhances Edge Gold Flooring Panels to Stand Up Against Rain Better Than Ever
January 15, 2012 - FEDERAL WAY, WA -- Weyerhaeuser has added another feature to its premium Edge Gold™ flooring panels to further enhance the panels' resistance to rain and moisture. The company's new proprietary Down Pore™ self-draining technology channels water from the panels' surfaces and drains it off the joists below... Read full story

 

New Home Sales Rise 1.6 Percent in November
January 04, 2012 - WASHINGTON -- Sales of new single-family houses in November 2011 were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 315,000, 1.6 percent above the revised October rate of 310,000 and 9.8 percent above the November 2010 estimate of 287,000, according to estimates released recently by the U.S... Read full story

 

Construction Spending Up 1.2 Percent in November
January 04, 2012 - The U.S. Census Bureau of the Department of Commerce announced that construction spending during November 2011 was estimated at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $807.1 billion, 1.2 percent above the revised October estimate of $797.4 billion. The November figure is 0.5 percent above the November 2010 estimate of $803.0 billion... Read full story

 

Pending Home Sales Rise Again in November, Highest in a Year-and-a-Half
January 04, 2012 - Pending home sales continued to gain in November and reached the highest level in 19 months, according to the National Association of Realtors. The Pending Home Sales Index, a forward-looking indicator based on contract signings, increased 7.3 percent to 100.1 in November from an upwardly revised 93.3 in October and is 5... Read full story

 

Architecture Billings Climbs into Positive Territory for First Time in Four Months
January 04, 2012 - WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Continuing the positive momentum of a nearly three point bump in October, the Architecture Billings Index (ABI) reached its first positive mark since August... Read full story

 

Home Prices Declined in Start of Fourth Quarter, According to Latest Case-Shiller Home Price Data
January 03, 2012 - Data through October 2011, released last week by S&P Indices for its S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Indices, the leading measure of U.S. home prices, showed decreases of 1.1% and 1.2% for the 10- and 20-City Composites in October vs. September. Nineteen of the 20 cities covered by the indices also saw home prices decrease over the month... Read full story

 

McGraw-Hill Construction and U.S. Green Building Council Renew Alliance to Advance Sustainable Design and Construction
January 03, 2012 - NEW YORK -- McGraw-Hill Construction and the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) have renewed their alliance to share green building news and analysis through GreenSource Magazine and GreenSourceMag.com. Through this agreement, which began in 2006, GreenSource will continue to be distributed to 14,000 USGBC members... Read full story

 

Video Podcast Explores Bathtub Refinishing
January 03, 2012 - So that bathtub of yours has lost its luster. Before you spend lots of cash to tear out that tub and replace it, you might want to consider refinishing your existing one. This video podcast from Angieslist.com explains the process, and how you can help your tub stay sparkling for years to come: ... Read full story