| Now Is The Time To Build! |
NOW IS THE BEST TIME IN TWENTY YEARS TO BUILD YOUR NEW HOMEYes, considering all of the negative news being thrown at us today about the depressed housing market, the rising foreclosure rates, the excessive inventory of homes for sale and the general threat of a potential recession, this might seem to be some misguided advice for these times. But the truth is that there is good news out there for those who might be considering a new home at this time, and we would ask you to take a minute to consider some facts about our housing market that might surprise you. To put things into perspective for a minute, the home building industry had been in an exciting expansion mode for the last seven years where most anything that was built could be quickly sold, often at prices that were unrealistically high. Money was cheaper than usual and in most cases, easy to get. As the good times rolled, some significant growing pains began to surface in the industry which would eventually come back to haunt us all (buyers and sellers). The producers of building materials struggled to provide the materials and labor necessary to build two million plus homes per year. They built huge new production facilities, and sawmills were modernized to produce lumber faster than ever. Imports of wood products from Canada and Europe exceeded anyone’s expectations. New building products were introduced regularly made from composite products (a combination of wood and artificial raw materials such as polyurethane). Composite decking materials, new sidings, new roofing styles, laminated floors, composite counter tops are just a few of the items that have come to the market over the last few years. Regional building companies across our country grew to national conglomerates building thousands of homes per year. This production required more and more people every year. Labor was needed for every trade that contributed to the construction of a house. The technical schools could not train people fast enough, but the two million homes were still built. Additionally, in response to the demand for increased housing over the last few years, the price of land exploded and developers flooded the market with building lots to feed the large demand for more housing. The big builders were buying up very large blocks of lots to build their share of the 2,000,000 homes. Today, the rate of production of new homes has fallen below 800,000 new homes per year. Now there are building materials available to build an additional 1,200,000 homes, but there is no place for this material to go. The basic law of supply and demand dictated that prices would fall. The available supply of building materials is definitely very high, thus today lumber and other building products have reached 20-year lows in value. OSB, the main panel used for roof decking is approaching levels not seen since the product was introduced in the late 1970’s. Drywall has fallen in half. All of the key items to build your new home are plentiful and very inexpensive by comparison to two years ago. There are a couple of product groups that are not falling in price due to outside influences. Roofing is going up due to petroleum prices, and steel prices are rising due to Chinese demand for steel. But still you can purchase the basic building material package for a lot less money today. The pool of labor reacted just like materials. There was labor to build two million homes, but now with only 800,000, there are framing crews, roofers, dry-wallers, plumbers, electricians and all other trades needing houses to build. Competition among tradesmen has lowered prices, and the more experienced builders are easier to hire today than in the past. The reduction in demand over the past year has opened the availability of land lots that the builders previously had in their inventories for speculative building. You, the potential buyer, now may have access to more lots (at a lower price) from which to choose for your custom-built home. If you chose, with your savings on regular products, you can plan for better materials in your new home. Several examples are OSB roof decking with a foil facer which will help lower your cooling bills. Concrete siding products which can be painted the color you want but will hold up to the weather. Look for composite decking and rail products that are low maintenance and very long lasting. Architecturally correct moldings can be used throughout your new home. New and different door styles for both exterior and interior use are available as well as new styles of shower doors and kitchen cabinets. The list can be extensive of better quality items that you can now afford to put in your new home with your savings. Home prices will not stay down. The new homes in Middle Georgia did not follow the big metro markets’ home values which moved up sharply and now back down sharply. Your new home in Middle Georgia has been and will continue to be a solid investment. Today is the time to build your new home, saving money on the basics and putting better items in to improve your life style. Foreclosure rates are currently high because money was too easy to get during the last few years, so lending requirements are a little tougher, but the good news is that fixed rates for home mortgages are at a 30 year low. With all these positive factors in place, perhaps the most important element to consider is the location in which we live. Middle Georgia is a thriving, growing area with much to offer in areas of quality of life, economic growth, stability and a bright future for the importance of home ownership as a sound investment. To sum it up, we rest our case on the following factors that make this a great time to invest in home ownership. There are a lot of negative perceptions being thrown at everyone these days, but those of us who face these challenges in the housing market everyday are anxious to share these positive considerations with you and perhaps shed a positive light on an area that has been misrepresented as of late. Management Staff, Warner Robins Supply Co.
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