Regions

Washington, D.C.–Builder confidence in the single-family home market rose in February, according to the National Association of Home BuildersWells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI) released Tuesday afternoon.The index–which hit an all-time low of 18 in December 2007–increased a point to 20 in February. A reading above 50 indicates that more builders view sales conditions as good rather than poor.The sales expectations index, which forecasts builders’ expectations for the next six months, rose five points to 19–the highest level since July 2007. Three regions saw HMI increases this month–the Northeast, which rose three points to 24; the South, which rose two…

Milton Keynes–Thanks to two Bank of England interest rate cuts, U.K. home prices increased for the first time in four months in February, according to property Web site Rightmove, headquartered in Milton Keynes. The average home list price had jumped 3.2 percent to £237,856 by mid-month, Bloomberg reported Monday. In January, listing prices declined by 0.8 percent. The average time a home sat on the market increased from 78 to 93 days in the year, according to Rightmove, which also found that prices in nine of the 10 England and Wales regions it tracked rose 5.8 percent in the month.Homebuilder…

Los Angeles–Los Angeles is on the verge of adopting one of the toughest U.S. residential green building plans, the Los Angeles Times reports.The under-consideration plan–voted on by two city council committees Friday–would force all major commercial and residential developments to cut energy and water use using low-emission paints, recycled materials, irrigation systems and natural light. The city’s more than 200 annual privately built projects over 50,000 square feet would have to incorporate a checklist of green features based off the Leadership in Energy and Environment Design (LEED) guidelines. If the measure passes, Los Angeles likely would set up a “Green…

Washington, D.C.–Government data released Friday indicated manufacturing was faltering along with consumer confidence in the U.S., TheNew York Times reports.Oil prices pushed import costs up 1.7 percent in January, a 13.7 percent rise compared to January 2006–the highest annual rate since 1983. Expensive gas is also hurting consumer spending as people continue to reduce the amount of nonessential items they buy, the Times said. Imported petroleum prices rose 67 percent from a year ago, according to the Labor Department.The Empire State Manufacturing survey, which measures New York’s business conditions, dropped to negative levels in February–minus 11.7–its lowest reading since April…

London–The U.K. government announced Sunday that it would nationalize Northern Rock bank, the country’s fifth largest lender, the Financial Times reported Monday.After five months of trying to secure a private buyer, the decision to nationalize stemmed from the mortgage lender’s commitment to protecting taxpayers’ money, chancellor Alistair Darling said. After running into problems with its funding structure, which involved relying heavily on short-term money markets instead of deposits, Northern Rock collapsed last year during the global credit crisis.Taxpayers, who are now subsidizing the bank in loans and guarantees to other lenders, stand to lose about £100 billion–7 percent of national…

By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorChicago–Skender Construction, a Palos Hills, Ill.-based general contracting company, has unveiled its plans for two new buildings–a mixed-use and a senior housing project–in Chicago and Lombard, Ill. Fountain View Lincoln Square is a 48,500-sq.-ft. mixed-use development located in Chicago’s Lincoln Square neighborhood. The project, being developed by Terra Firma Co.,  will feature Class A retail shops, 18 luxury condominiums and underground parking. Construction for the project started in December 2007 and is slated to be complete in fall 2008. The development is also expected to receive LEED certification from the U.S. Green Building Council. Sunrise…

Orlando, Fla.–Rents will hit a new high in the next few years, two Florida-area apartment builders told crowds at the International Builders’ Show Wednesday in Orlando, Fla., the Tampa Bay Tribune reports.”Rent increases will exceed historical averages over the next three to five years,” said Steve Patterson, CEO of Zom Inc., an Orlando-based apartment builder.As credit difficulties make it harder for people with less-than-perfect credit to obtain home loans, demand for rental units will increase, Patterson said.The increasing number of homeowners who are losing their homes to foreclosure are also expected to give the rental market a boost as they…

Orlando, Fla.–Although U.S. real estate might bottom out this year, the Florida housing market will most likely take longer to rebound, according to economists who spoke Wednesday at the International Builders’ Show in Orlando, Fla.Although some states–such as North Carolina–are doing much better than the rest of the country’s real estate markets, Florida is currently undergoing a sharp price correction from the high home prices and sales it experienced during the housing boom, the Palm Beach Post reports.Cities in Florida, California, Ohio and Michigan comprised three-quarters of the 20 U.S. metropolitan areas with the greatest number of foreclosures last year,…

Orlando, Fla.–Emphasizing green building’s marketability and upbeat consumer message, the National Association of Home Builders announced its National Green Building Program on Thursday, which had been designated as Green Day at the International Builders’ Show in Orlando, Fla.”This is a historic day for our association,” said Bob Jones, an NAHB vice president and a builder in Bloomfield Hills, Mich. “This program allows all home builders to build green in a cost-effective way. Builders and consumers can select the green features that make the most sense for them.”Homes will be tested and scored by a national network of verification experts–whom the…

Orlando, Fla.–Despite a nationwide housing slump, attendance at the International Builders’ show in Orlando, Fla. may only be down 5 percent, the Orlando Sentinel reports.Paul Lopez, a spokesman for the show’s annual host, the National Association of Home Builders, said registration was strong on the show’s opening day, prompting the organizers to decrease their previous attendance assessment, which indicated turnout may have dropped 9 percent.”We would be ecstatic if it’s only down 5 percent,” Lopez said.Jessie Allen, general manager of the Orange County Convention Center, said the center was busy during the show.  “Obviously, there was a number of folks…