Emerging Trends in Homebuilding

Recently a new report from Urban Land Institute has been making waves throughout the construction and design industries. This reputable and widely spread forecast outlines the transition from the post-recession slump in housing to the bright future ahead. Most interesting however, are some of the general trends covered in the report:

"18 Hour" cities such as Portland, Oregon are projected to rapidly grow

Smaller Cities Will Grow the Most. Places such as Austin, Portland, Raleigh, and Charlotte will likely grow at substantially faster rates than traditional, better-known big cities. Lower cost of living, better transit connectivity, and more open opportunities for investment are making these smaller cities attractive for residents, builders, and investors alike. Portland is already feeling the growth, as it's rental rates/cost are among the fastest rising in the nation (we've seen this firsthand, as we've provided surface protection to a number of new urban projects there). Austin is experiencing its own building boom, rent increases, and growth; and its skyline will soon feature a new tallest building---a residential skyscraper.

Decline in Home Ownership. It's been well documented for some time that millennials are waiting longer to purchase homes, and fewer are even doing so. Interestingly however, a decline in home ownership rates is being seen across all age groups. While the home ownership rate was 70% before the economic downturn, that rate has declined and has been stuck at 63% ever since. Even with the modest recovery taking place and the rapid growth of smaller cities, home owenership rates aren't growing. As a result, non-traditional housing options are increasingly popular. Microhousing units (residences smaller than 350 sqft) are cropping up in urban centers, and rental properties are increasingly desirable; as seen through the massive increases in rental cost in Portland, Austin, and other smaller cities. There certainly exist opportunities for new and creative housing solutions in cities.

Less Parking. Recently, a very popular image overlaying the amount of parking in Los Angeles relative to the size of L.A. has gone viral. It illustrates a big problem with modern cities; parking lots are an inefficient use of land.

The degree to which parking wastes urban space in L.A.

Urban density is increasing, public transit is improving, and fewer young Americans are choosing to own cars. Expect to see a transition away from parking lots towards parking garages and underground lots.

It will be interesting to follow 2016's new housing starts to see if any of these highlighted trends become apparent. Stay up to date with all of our blogging and social media efforts by checking in for our weekly blog postings!

Protecting Curtain Walls

We have been receiving much recent interest about keeping curtain walls damage-free. Because curtain walls are installed relatively early in the construction process, they lie at a huge risk of being damaged. To combat this, we've created a new page on our website devoted to curtain wall surface protection.

The Jaqua Center at the University of Oregon

We just had large edge protection specifically manufactured for window mullions, edges, and window frames. We also feature corrugated plastic sheeting, films, and anything else you might need to keep these expensive walls clean.

Eco Towers; A Proactive Way To Build Green

As builders become more conscious and consumers become more aware of building green, innovative and creative solutions are being developed far beyond the scope of current LEED standards. An urban planner from the University of Illinois has recently envisioned creating structures that are not only energy efficient, but also proactively fight climate change.

This would be accomplished through a variety of solutions, ranging from seawater powered air conditioning to creating a symbiotic structure, with integrated trees and plants. Many propose that this style of building will spark a new trend of "eco-iconic" design. With radical and non-conventional designs such as those below, I certainly agree.

                               
     

The Swiss-cheese looking facade on the left limits the amount of sunlight reaching the building; which substantially reduces the cooling costs for a building in Dubai. On the right, trees and plants have been fully integrated into the staggered decks of this proposed building as a long-term method to combat carbon. As green architecture and construction advance, I look forward to seeing the novel solutions proposed. 

Residential Construction Spending Is Rising, Hooray (For Now).

Recently new data was released by the NAHB that points towards the continuation of the increase in residential home building. Constructing spending rose in August, which is reflected in the consistent upward trend in spending since the post-recession trough.

In all, single-family housing spending has risen 14% in the last year, while multi-family housing spending is up over 25% in the last year. Unfortunately the rate of change of multifamily spending is declining, so multifamily housing construction is beginning to cool off. However, single-family spending is accelerating, and may be able rise enough to cover some of the gap in spending between the two.

If you're interested in follow market trends in building, I highly recommend checking up on the NAHB's Eye on Housing page.

Green Building Jobs Are On The Rise

According to a new article published by Houston online newspaper Chron, Green Building jobs are growing faster than construction jobs in any other sector.

Overall, green building jobs now account for more than one-third of all building jobs, a proportion that's set only to continue rising.

Green projects like this now account for an increasing percentage of all projects

To cash in on green building, we offer an array of environmentally friendly surface protection products, all of which can be seen on our website here.

We've Got A New Product to Offer

The first of our many new products is up and running on our website! We're happy to now offer Safety Boot Rail Protection.

Safety Boot system comprises of the yellow pieces mounted to the stairs

The new rail protection allows contractors to create free-standing OSHA compliant guardrails for perimeter protection. Safety Boot is an easy-to-use anchor that allows for wood 2" in thickness to be quickly constructed into a handrail system. Safety Boot can be drilled into concrete as well, making it ideal for commercial builders, too.

All of this prevents workers, customers, and any others on-site from taking a nasty fall. The last thing anyone wants to deal with is being sued into oblivion or getting stuck with obnoxious worker's comp hassles and lost man-hours, just get a Safety Boot.

As always, if you have any questions about surface protection, email us at sales@buildsitepro.com, call us at (541) 633-7793, or visit our website www.buildsitepro.com