Last Wednesday a group from NCHBA delivered more than 5,000 petitions to our Congressional Delegation in Washington, D.C., calling on them to "Fix Housing First" by including housing provisions in the stimulus bill.
NCHBA collected about 1,100 petitions from around the state, Raleigh-Wake HBA collected more than 2,100, and the HBA of Durham, Orange and Chatham collected nearly 1,000. Tim Minton, Nick Tennyson, Warren Smith, Mark Massengill, Dave Hausfeld and Jim Anderson hand-delivered the petitions and met with Sen. Richard Burr and Reps. Brad Miller, David Price and Bob Etheridge.
The Charlotte HBA also collected about 1,000 petitions and hand-delivered them to the local offices of Reps. Sue Myrick, Mel Watt and Larry Kissell and met with their staff. They overnighted copies of the petitions to the U.S. Senate so that they were delivered at the same time the other petitions were delivered.
Overall the reception was great, and our delegation was very impressed that builders took the time to sign these petitions.
Photo top: Tim Minton, EO of Raleigh-Wake HBA, Nick Tennyson, EO of HBA of DOC, Warren Smith, Raleigh-Wake 1st Vice President, Senator Richard Burr, Mark Massengill, Immediate Past President of Raleigh-Wake, Jim Anderson, HBA of DOC First VP, and Dave Hausfeld, Immediate Past President of HBA of DOC.
Photo bottom: Dave Hausfeld, Immediate Past President, HBA of DOC, and Mark Massengill, Immediate Past President, Raleigh Wake Co. HBA, look on as Congressman Brad Miller examines the Fix Housing First key that was delivered with more than 5,000 petitions.
On Wednesday, Senators Joe Liebermann and Johnny Isakson introduced an amendment that was adopted by the Senate that increases the tax credit for home buyers to $15,000.
It is critically important that the entire $15,000 home buyer tax credit be included in the Senate-passed bill so we are in the strongest position as the House and Senate begin conference negotiations to hammer out a final stimulus bill. Continue to circulate the petition and return to NCHBA so that we can forward them to members of our delegation during Senate and House negotiations of the final stimulus legislation.
In addition to signing the petition and returning it to NCHBA, call your Senators at 1-866-924-NAHB (6242) and tell them to preserve the entire $15,000 credit in the Senate version of the economic stimulus bill. After listening to a brief message about the tax credit, you will be asked to enter your zip code so that you can be connected to your House and Senate legislators. The tax credit message should only go to your Senators. So, after the prompt, please press "2" to skip your Representative and be connected to your first Senator. After you speak to your first Senator, simply stay on the line to automatically be connected to your second Senator.
New data from the State Board of Elections shows that the AveryCounty land transfer tax was defeated on Feb. 3.The tax was originally thought to have passed, but the SBOE changed the results after it was discovered that one precinct made an error in its reporting. Currently, the tally is 1,437 against the tax and 1,405 in favor of the tax. The SBOE will certify the results this week.
The “Employee Free Choice Act”--better known as the Card Check bill--is a proposed law that would change how unions are allowed to organize workers in the United States. Big labor unions like the AFL-CIO, SEIU, and the Change to Win Coalition spent heavily during the 2008 elections(estimated at $4.7 million in NC), and are hoping their hard work will not go ignored. Nationally, union membership has been declining and the unions hope the Card Check bill will reverse that trend. If the Employee Free Choice Act is passed, it would change the entire landscape of the business community.
In May 2008, NAHB unanimously approved a resolution that urged Congress and the Administration to oppose any effort to replace the current secret ballot process with a less private unionization vote or “card check” system. NAHB is part of a group called the Coalition for a Democratic Workplace (www.myprivateballot.com) that opposes the Card Check bill. NCHBA’s Government Affairs staff is participating in the North Carolinians to Preserve Employee Choice, a coalition of North Carolina businesses and trade associations that will oppose measures that weaken North Carolina’s laws and tradition as a Right-to-Work state.
We Need Your Help!
The group Americans for Prosperity has organized two events next week (in Greensboro and in Raleigh) that aim to draw attention to North Carolina’s widespread opposition to this bill. Click here for a flyer for the events. Please consider promoting these events to your membership, especially if you are in the greater Greensboro or greater Raleigh areas. While we are just beginning our grassroots efforts against this legislation, a strong showing at these events will be extremely helpful in influencing folks, such as Senator Kay Hagan, who remain “undecided” on the issue.
On February 18 at the conclusion of the First Quarter NCHBA Board Meeting in Pinehurst, N.C., an educational forum will be presented on practical tidbits and other things you should know about survival during these tough economic times. Surviving the Storm—A Builder’s Perspective is a two-hour presentation and Q&A presented by Greg Isenhour and Tom McCuiston. The presentation is a brief format, or “beta,” for a course being developed for the Accredited Builder (AB) designation of NCBI. Material presented during this seminar will be highlights from the 8-hour AB course under development. It is anticipated that this forum will also provide additional information and questions from the participants to ensure the new course addresses all aspects of this topic.
The NCHBA Regional Meetings were held last week and were very successful. We had great attendance and interesting discussions at each meeting. A detailed update on the "Fix Housing First" initiative was given at each meeting. Other topics discussed around the state included membership retention, NCHBA's upcoming legislative agenda, and building codes.
The Region VIII meeting in Conover was cancelled due to inclement weather and will be rescheduled for March.
Be sure to look for an in-depth description of the regional meetings in the March issue of North Carolina Builder.
A crash course on BUILD-PAC basics will be held at the NCHBA 1st Quarter Meeting in Pinehurst on Feb. 17. To sign up, please RSVP by Feb. 13 to Erin Jones at (919) 676-9090 or by email at
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The 1st Quarter Meeting is scheduled for Feb. 17-18 at Pinehurst Resort & Country Club. The first day will consist of committee meetings and an evening "get-acquainted" reception. The Board of Directors will meet on Wednesday morning to conclude the meeting.
If you have thought about getting more involved in NCHBA activities or want to know what is going on in the association, join us at the 1st Quarter Meeting. A list of committees and councils is included on the registration form.
Please complete and return the registration form to NCHBA. If you intend to stay overnight, you must make hotel reservations directly with the hotel.
Two associations are offering the "Green Building for Building Professionals" and "Business Management for Building Professionals" classes. These classes are part of the NAHB Certified Green Professional designation.
The Hickory & Catawba Valley Home Builders Association classes are scheduled for March 30-31 and April 1. Carl Seville of Seville Consulting is the instructor. Classes will be held at the Hickory Metro Convention Center. See flyer for cost and registration information.
The High Country Home Builders Association classes are scheduled for April 1-2 and April 3. Michael Chandler is the instructor for Green Building for Building Professionals and J. Wallace West will teach the Business Management course. Classes will be held at the Builders Plaza in Boone. See flyer for cost and registration form.
The N.C. Building Code Council will meet March 9-10. The council will hold a work session at 9 a.m. on March 9, followed by a public hearing at 1 p.m. The council meeting will be held at 9 a.m. on March 10. For more information, visit the N.C. Department of Insurance Building Code Council Web site at http://www.ncdoi.com/OSFM/Engineering/BCC/engineering_bcc_calendar.asp.
The Spring 2009 North Carolina Builder Institute session is scheduled for March 3-5 at the McKimmon Center in Raleigh. Registration is now open for a wide range of courses.
The North Carolina Home Builders Educational & Charitable Foundation, Inc. is now accepting nominations and applications for its college scholarships. The foundation awards scholarships based on a combination of need and merit to four-year college students entering their junior or senior year and technical school students entering their second year who have declared their major in a construction related field.
To be eligible a student must meet the following criteria:
Applicants must be nominated by a NCHBA member firm.
Nominees shall be immediate family members - related by blood, (i.e. children, step-children or grandchildren). Students related by marriage, (i.e. son-in-law, daughter-in-law, etc.) shall not be eligible.
Immediate family members of any current trustee of the NCHB Educational & Charitable Foundation, Inc. shall not be eligible.
Awards are for one year, but scholarship winners may submit a renewal application and be considered for renewal if they make satisfactory progress in their studies.
Only full-time students will be considered. NCHBA defines a full-time student as one taking a minimum of 12 credit hours per semester.
The deadline for entries is April 30, 2009. For a nomination form or an application packet, contact NCHBA at (800) 662-7129; (919) 676-9090 or e-mail: . Mail completed applications to: North Carolina Home Builders Association (NCHBA), P. O. Box 99090, Raleigh, NC 27624.
North Carolina Real Estate Executive Named President of NAHB’s Institute of Residential Marketing Gaye Burwell Orr, MIRM, vice president and partner of Coldwell Banker Advantage New Homes, was named president of the National Association of Home Builders’ (NAHB) Institute of Residential Marketing (IRM) during the 2009 International Builders’ Show in Las Vegas last month.
Founded in 1977, the IRM is the educational arm of NAHB’s National Sales and Marketing Council (NSMC). The IRM was created to guarantee the highest skill level of new home sales and marketing professionals. Click here for the entire article.
Economic Woes Freeze the Remodeling Market
The residential remodeling market declined further during the final quarter of 2008, according to the latest National Association of Home Builders’ (NAHB) Remodeling Market Index (RMI). The current market conditions indicator slid to 27.7, from 33.5 in the previous quarter. Future expectations of remodeling work plummeted to 19.6, from 27.7 in the third quarter. Both these indices descended to historic lows since the start of the RMI in 2001.
The RMI measures remodeler perceptions of market demand for current and future residential remodeling projects. Any number over 50 indicates that the majority of remodelers view market conditions as improving. The RMI has been running below 50 since the final quarter of 2005, following decreasing remodeling expenditures since that time. Click here for the entire article.
Last Wednesday a group from NCHBA delivered more than 5,000 petitions to our Congressional Delegation in Washington, D.C., calling on them to "Fix Housing First" by including housing provisions in the stimulus bill. 
The Charlotte HBA also collected about 1,000 petitions and hand-delivered them to the local offices of Reps. Sue Myrick, Mel Watt and Larry Kissell and met with their staff. They overnighted copies of the petitions to the U.S. Senate so that they were delivered at the same time the other petitions were delivered. 
