Kermit Baker
Kermit Baker
niche slice themselves thin
Firms really niche themselves on a thin slice of remodeling activity.
activity expect share
We expect that share of activity to grow.
billions dollars economic excellent generates interior market pick position related represents shows signs slack spending
As the residential market shows signs of softening, the nonresidential market is in excellent position to pick up the slack in construction activity. Nonresidential construction not only represents billions of dollars in economic activity, but also generates a lot of related spending in furnishings and interior decor.
area build creative floor generate incentive setbacks suspicion within
My suspicion is, this 'staying within the footprint' idea has to do with zoning. If there are restriction setbacks in a community, or floor area requirements, there's an incentive to do this. You can't build on, so you build within. That would generate some pretty creative solutions.
instead means phone return three
For consumers, this means they are going to get contractors who return phone calls, and they are going to be able to get two or three bids, instead of just one.
caught
Not bigger, but better - that thought has caught on in some places.
changes enjoy hard instincts market predict trends trust
It's hard to predict when or how market remodeling trends change. Trust your instincts and you'll be able to enjoy all the changes you make.
appliances fancy
They want the top-line appliances in their kitchens. They want the fancy countertops.
both carry economy helped slower source
It's a harbinger of slower growth. Both home-building and remodeling helped carry the economy through slower times. Now it will be the reverse, or at the very least it won't be a source of propping up the economy.
activity design education health regional seeing seem strong strongest
We're seeing regional design activity very strong here. The strongest sectors seem to be on the institutional side, education and health care.
buyers cape convenient core fairly half home jobs last moving older population seen smaller spending suburbs value
Over the last 10 years, we've seen a fairly significant core of the population spending more than half the value of their home on improvements. Some of that is because buyers increasingly are moving into older suburbs convenient to their jobs in the city, and they're renovating smaller Cape Cod and ranch-style homes.
concern efficient emphasis energy ensure five four homes last strong technology
There's a strong concern in that area, which has been heightened over the last four to five months. There's more emphasis on technology to ensure that homes are as energy efficient as they can be.
energy money
There's a lot of energy and money going here.
architects design early fairly helps key percentage small trends
Architects design a fairly small percentage of homes, but they really are the trendsetters. It helps us find out early what the key trends are.