Peter Simpson
Sun
I admit it; I am an incurable housing junkie. In the business I may be, but I can’t get enough information on new homes and renovations.
Housing affordability is definitely a challenge these days — and a thorny topic for another day — but choice is certainly no challenge for folks willing and able to buy a new home.
Thumbing through the ads in the weekend dailies, the regional newspapers and the magazines devoted exclusively to new homes, I am constantly goggle-eyed at the wide variety of home types and styles being offered locally.
The impressive offering includes highrise and lowrise apartments, apartments above shops, townhouses and single-family detached homes of every size, shape and style. You name it, it’s available.
During the first nine months of this year, almost 15,000 homes were started in the Lower Mainland, up six per cent from the same 2005 period — and, remarkably, up more than 80 per cent from the 8,200 started in the first year of the new millennium.
Starts activity has actually slowed somewhat during the past few months, but this moderation was expected much earlier in the year. If you are into crystal-ball gazing, the forecast for 2006 was for marginally higher starts totals, with no sharp increases or dramatic drops expected. That seems to be the case with three months worth of starts left to count.
Due to the rising cost of land, building materials, municipal development charges and skilled labour, new-home prices continue to rise. Currently, demand for new homes outstrips supply but conflicting reports paint very different pictures of the current situation.
Some builders say sales have slowed, while others report brisk activity. One builder reported that no one visited his site all week. Another, however, said a group of prospective buyers recently camped out overnight for a chance to buy homes at his new community in Fort Langley.
Builders, still coming to grips with an across-the-board labour shortage, are exercising caution when considering new projects. No bodies, no building. Some view the situation as a self-imposed breather.
The labour crunch is also being felt in the planning and development departments at city hall. Despite their best efforts, municipalities are falling behind in their approvals and permitting processes, with one high-growth city now taking more than 11 weeks to issue a building permit.
The sheer volume is also affecting attention to after-sales service. I don’t know about you, but anything unfinished or unfixed at our house drives me to distraction. Through the grapevine I heard some home buyers are becoming frustrated by the lack of attention to deficiencies in their new homes.
Alas, patience is not one of my virtues, so I understand the buyers’ concerns. They believe they are paying good money for their homes and they, particularly cash-strapped first-time buyers, expect perfection for their investment. And they want any glaring deficiencies to be fixed expeditiously.
Most builders take seriously their commitment to customer service. In fact, many have won awards for their service excellence. Typically these builders have on-staff representatives who schedule service appointments and an in-house technical crew to rectify most deficiencies.
Problem is, builders’ schedules are subject to the availability of the sub-trades, the plumbers, electricians and tile setters. Like it or not, patience needs to be the order of the day.
That said, builders who ignore a home owner’s reasonable request for service, or try to run out the clock on the problem, do so at their own peril. Allowed to fester, the problem will assuredly erode the buyer/builder relationship, with the potential of severely damaging the builder’s image.
Timely and frank two-way communication is the sensible way to foster good relations.
The Vancouver Home & Interior Design Show continues today and Sunday at BC Place. Stop by the Greater Vancouver Home Builders’ Association’s ”Renovation Gallery” to discuss with professional renovators, architects and interior designers your renovation projects.
On display will be many before-and-after photographs of recently renovated homes.
More than $6.1 billion will be spent on home renovation this year in B.C. and homeowners need to engage in some careful planning and solicit professional advice before embarking on any renovation project.
Renovation guru Mike Holmes says homeowners, before they hire a home renovator, should be prepared to call in 20 different contractors and interview them individually.
Now, Mike is a terrific guy who dispenses some valuable advice, but 20 contractors to visit the home? Heck, in this market a homeowner would be extremely fortunate to get five contractors to return the call, let alone visit.
If you can’t attend the home show, and you are considering renovating your home, you might want to attend the popular home renovation seminar, presented by our association’s renovation council on Oct. 26 in Vancouver. More than 350 homeowners attended the spring seminar.
Seminar presenters will discuss the various stages of the renovation process, including design and planning, legal and contracts, selecting a renovator, municipal permits and living through a renovation. For details visit gvhba.org on the Internet or call 604-588-5036 during business hours. Admission is free, but the council encourages participants to bring along a donation to the Vancouver Food Bank Society.
Peter Simpson is chief executive officer of the Greater Vancouver Home Builders’ Association. Email:
© The Vancouver Sun 2006
