Table of Contents July 2005

FEATURES

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  Planning for retirement

  Retirement is changing. Because we're living longer, healthier lives, we require more income to maintain current lifestyles for a longer time. That requires planning, and for remodelers, as for owners of other businesses, the sooner you start, the easier it will be to meet the needs of your own...

   

• Licensing requirements face test

  Michael Hamman sat for the California licensing exam more than a quarter of a century ago, but the memory still makes him laugh — and cringe.

   

Before and After

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  Remodel provides host of challenges

  The transformation of the 1977 ranch house with its cramped box of a kitchen to a 3,965-square-foot house with four bedrooms, four bathrooms, and a wide open kitchen overlooking a great room — inhabited by a happy client — is a testament to Levy's, and project manager John Brechel's, perseverance...

   

Reader Panel

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  Survey finds support for licensing

  Licensing can be a frustrating part of the remodeling process. Most remodelers believe the profession should uphold professional and technical standards, but many say licensing ensures neither because of easy, meaningless, or nonexistent tests and educational requirements.

   

VIEW POINT

FIRST WORD

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  Influence of company culture

   

IN PERSON

• New features at the Remodeling Show

  This year's Remodeling Show promises some new features to really give you the chance to tailor the show to your needs.

   

News + Notes

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  Busy hurricane season predicted

  Two recently released predictions for the Atlantic hurricane season forecast “above average” activity, with the number of storms likely to exceed last year's total.

   

• Tips for green remodeling

  The Sustainable Building Industry Council's “Green Building Guidelines” is now available for purchase online.

   
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  Factors that support home value

  A nationwide statistical study released in May adds further weight to existing evidence about the correlation between certain house components and the price of the home.

   

MARKET WATCH

• Figure This

   

• Giving is clue to remodeling market

  Ben Auger is a renaissance man.

   
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  Remodeling index points to growth

  Current market conditions in the remodeling industry increased for most of the U.S. from the fourth quarter of 2004, according to the first quarter 2005 release of the NAHB's Remodeling Market Index.

   

COMMENTARY

GUEST COLUMNIST

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  Outdoors accessibility affects feel of home

  Often, people will go into a home and will really love how it feels, but won't be able to pinpoint why. Many times, it has nothing to do with the size of the house. It has to do with the availability of and accessibility to the outside when they're inside. That's the magic of great architecture;...

   

LINDA CASE

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  Positive culture gives competitive edge

  The report followed with a list of company values and D&B's pledge that “all our activities and decisions must be based on, and guided by, our values.”

   

MARK RICHARDSON

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  Stay confident in uncertain times

  n today's complex world, people experience a lot of uncertainty. Take personal health, for example. Every day we hear about new studies that call into question long-established assumptions about what foods we should eat or what medications are safe to prescribe.

   

WALT STOEPPELWERTH

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  Adapt to change or get left behind

  During most of the past 40 years, there was enough similarity between houses being built that most companies could handle all the work involved in any type of remodeling job.

   

YOUR BUSINESS

Sales and Marketing

• Television sponsorship yields steady results

  Cook-Dahl, a full-service remodeler in Brockport, N.Y., hasn't increased its $2,500 marketing budget in years.

   

• Selecting an advertising vehicle

  Choosing a print advertising vehicle has everything to do with your target market, your product, and your budget.

   

• Several stages of sales leads

  The Artisans Group, Olympia, Wash., tracks job leads through seven stages to sharpen its sales and marketing focus.

   

• Bank holds renovation expo

  Alex Dean has seen the future of home-remodeling shows, and it's practically in his back yard. Dean, president of The Alexander Group, Kensington, Md., spent a recent Saturday morning manning a table at Chevy Chase Bank's first-ever Home Building & Renovation Expo.

   

BOTTOM LINE

• IRS offers info about IRAs

  The Internal Revenue Service now offers a free CD-ROM to help small-business owners learn about setting up and maintaining IRA-based retirement plans for their employees.

   

• Consultant's advice pays off

  Almost two years ago, Bob Tilghman of Tilghman Builders, in Hatboro, Pa., hired a consulting group to help him improve systems and implement new programs.

   

• BQE Software manages project

  BQE Software introduces a new tracking, billing, and project management software that supports both Intuit QuickBooks and Microsoft Business Accounting platforms.

   

BY DESIGN

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  Virtues of moldings

  Moldings are meant to divide and separate a room into visually appealing pieces that the eye can digest and understand. When this is accomplished well, your remodels and additions will take on an elegance and feel that customers will pay more for.

   

FIELD NOTES

• Houston builders association operates job board

  The Greater Houston Builders Association (GHBA) is connecting housing industry employers with skilled job seekers.

   
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  AGC grants training awards

  Earlier this year, the Associated General Contractors of America named AGC of Mississippi and Western Summit Constructors the winners of AGC's 2004 National Construction Craft Program Award.

   
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  Hiring service members

  Helmets to Hardhats (H2H) is a national program that helps servicemen and women find careers in the construction industry.

   

GOOD FORM

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  Following up on the job

  Scott Chatel knows that even when remodeling jobs are complete, they aren't really

   

Tech at Work

• Periodic maintanence for your computer

  The more dependent on computers you become, the more precautions you must take to ensure that everything stays up and running, and that your data is always there for you. Here's a simple schedule you can follow:

   

• Watch your netiquette

  E-mail is obviously fast; it can be an efficient use of time, and it's become ubiquitous. Susan Cosentini of Cosentini Construction, Ithaca, N.Y., reports using e-mail with 100% of her clients and considers not working with people if they are not online.

   

Ways + Means

• Setting the rules for your company

  As a business leader, it is up to you to set an example for the rest of your team in behavior, in dedication, and in demonstrating core values. However, you can do all of these things and still have a team that underperforms if you neglect to demonstrate one significant trait — discipline.

   

• Explaining contract essentials

  Contracts come in many shapes and formats, but there are a few essentials you should consider including. These can go a long way to stopping a problem before it starts and preventing a small problem from becoming a big nightmare.

   

• Importance of product selection walkthrough

  The job has been sold, the contract signed, and the preconstruction meeting held. The clients are excited to get started — but they can't remember some of their selections, or some things are on allowance, or some items are wrong because a designer used examples as place holders.

   

• Cutting worker's comp costs

  One item weighing down every remodeler's toolbelt is the cost of workers' compensation. Some states are admitting that their systems are broken and are trying to fix them.

   

BIG50

CLOSE UP

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  Profile of Douglas Reymore of Cascade Design/Build

  Douglas Reymore of Cascade Design/Build (Big50 2000) says more than one-third of his leads come from his participation in three Seattle home shows. The first home show in January spans nine days. The second show, in the fall season is four days, and the third specializes in remodeling.

   

FACE OFF

• Whether employees deserve an encore

  This has been a hot topic of discussion in our office for the past couple of months. We ended up having a meeting about it with all our employees, and the consensus was that if you leave here, you're gone. You can't come back.

   

SECOND LOOK

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  Profile of Jeff Talmadge of Talmadge Construction

  Since being recognized as one of the Big50 in 2003, Jeff Talmadge has done a 180 on his company. Located in Aptos, Calif., Talmadge Construction had been bidding on projects and using plans created by outside architects and designers.

   

KITCHEN AND BATH

DESIGN CLINIC

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  Modernizing within a traditional house

  For most kitchen remodels, homeowners want an update in materials and products, but they don't want something that is a glaring contrast to the style of their existing house. Designer Kelly Fey of Dimon Construction in Fayetteville, N.Y., says her clients appreciated the traditional look of their...

   

SPEC BOOK

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  New cabinetry products

  Although ornamental accessories abound, it seems consumers are lately drawn to a simpler look when it comes to cabinetry. What's most interesting is what's going on inside those full-overlay doors: myriad organization solutions to help homeowners straighten out their goods.

   

Management

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  A Place for Everything

  When Dan Luck began planning a move for his kitchen and bath remodeling company into a new building in Madison, Wis., he knew it would give his company a higher profile, so he wanted to create a showroom that had presence.

   

• NKBA forms ServiceMagic alliance

  The National Kitchen and Bath Association formed a strategic alliance with ServiceMagic to allow the NKBA's 11,000 members to increase their profits and revenue by reaching the increasing number of consumers using the Internet to find remodelers, designers, builders, and kitchen and bath...

   
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  Julien offers sink line

  A Canadian company, Julien, offers a new line of workstation sinks. Home Refinements Collection is a group of stainless steel products made for residential kitchens.

   
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  Thomasville introduces cabinetry

  Thomasville Furniture, a company known for its stylish high-quality furniture, recently introduced a line of cabinetry available through The Home Depot stores nationwide.

   

PRODUCTS

FIRST LOOK

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  New remodeling products

   

IN FOCUS

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  Tool Storage

   
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  New lighting products

   
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  New tool storage products

   
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  New siding products

  Trim is becoming increasingly sophisticated, with manufacturers making sure their products' shades match nearly everyone else's, and expanding widths and thicknesses to meet the needs of the smallest to the largest jobs.

   

READERS CHOICE

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  Skylight product shines

  Installing a skylight can be a simple one-off job or the icing on the cake of a larger remodeling project. Either way, Matt Philbin sleeps better knowing he won't get callbacks on the Velux skylights he uses exclusively.

   
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  Saw buts both ways

  When Barb Goodrich of Goodrich Renovations in Portland, Ore., took a women's beginning woodworking class five years ago, she made a friend for life: the Japanese pull-stroke saw.

   

TRENDS

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  Beadboard comes home

  White beadboard is coming out of the woodwork and into kitchen cabinetry and unexpected areas in the bath. Whether a homeowner seeks to recall turn-of-the-century summer retreats or just wants a clean, country look, a touch of this Victorian wainscoting bestows instant cottage chic.

   
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  Combining and contrasting materials

  The sleek look of stainless steel and full overlay cabinet doors still appeals to many consumers, but there's a budding contingent of folks who want just the opposite of sleek. Mixing materials and styles is becoming a hot option for those looking to put some character in their kitchens.

   
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  Hidden deck fasteners gain favor

  Deck aficionados, both homeowners and remodelers alike, are coming around to hidden deck fasteners. “I'd say five years ago, people didn't want the extra expense.

   

LAST WORD

Bench Mark

• Judging the value of a referral

  Who is the better referral source, a client who sends you 18 leads of which 2 become sales or a customer who sends you 4 leads of which 1 is sold?