Oct 25, 2017
According to this recent article from the National Association of Home Builders, builder confidence is up four points in October. Due in part to to the return of confidence following the devastating effects of the recent hurricanes. Finding skilled labor is still a challenge according to the report.
(NAHB) Builder confidence in the market for newly-built single-family homes rose four points to a level of 68 in October on the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI). This was the highest reading since May.
“This month’s report shows that home builders are rebounding from the initial shock of the hurricanes,” said NAHB Chairman Granger MacDonald, a home builder and developer from Kerrville, Texas. “However, builders need to be mindful of long-term repercussions from the storms, such as intensified material price increases and labor shortages.”
“It is encouraging to see builder confidence return to the high 60s levels we saw in the spring and summer,” said NAHB Chief Economist Robert Dietz. “With a tight inventory of existing homes and promising growth in household formation, we can expect the new home market continue to strengthen at a modest rate in the months ahead.”
Derived from a monthly survey that NAHB has been conducting for 30 years, the NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index gauges builder perceptions of current single-family home sales and sales expectations for the next six months as “good,” “fair” or “poor.” The survey also asks builders to rate traffic of prospective buyers as “high to very high,” “average” or “low to very low.” Scores for each component are then used to calculate a seasonally adjusted index where any number over 50 indicates that more builders view conditions as good than poor.
All three HMI components posted gains in October. The component gauging current sales conditions rose five points to 75 and the index charting sales expectations in the next six months increased five points to 78. Meanwhile, the component measuring buyer traffic ticked up a single point to 48.
Looking at the three-month moving averages for regional HMI scores, the South rose two points to 68 and the Northeast rose one point to 50. Both the West and Midwest remained unchanged at 77 and 63, respectively.
Editor’s Note: The NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index is strictly the product of NAHB Economics, and is not seen or influenced by any outside party prior to being released to the public. HMI tables can be found at nahb.org/hmi. More information on housing statistics is also available at housingeconomics.com.
Oct 18, 2017
Hard to believe that Halloween is only two weeks away! There’s still time to decorate your home for this spooktacular holiday. Whether you have kids or not, these festive decorations will be a hit with all of the neighborhood ghosts and goblins.
Easy Halloween Home Decor
Jack Skellington Door
Turn your front door into Jack Skellington’s face with this easy to do craft from Twin Dragonfly Designs. Download the free printable to create this super easy, but spooky door design. The kids might not be afraid to trick or treat at your home, but they’ll sure have fun doing it.
Spider Web
This front porch spider web from My Untangled Life is easy enough to do and make quite the impact! You won’t need much, just some clothesline and ceiling hooks — and of course a huge spider — to make this scary spider web all the kids will talk about November 1st. Click here for complete instructions and supply list.
Pumpkin Carving Templates
Need a little inspiration for a cute or scary and unique jack-o’-lantern? Check out these free beginner Halloween pumpkin carving templates from HGTV. They have bats, wands, space ships and even a pair of spooky ghosts.
Bloody Handprint Clings
These bloody handprint clings from Felt Magnet are so easy (and a little messy) to make, and who doesn’t like peeling Elmer’s Glue off their hands? All you need is some glue and red food coloring and you can make gross bloody handprint clings to put on any door or window. Click here for full instructions.
Easy
Jack-o’-Lantern Luminaries
Here’s another great Halloween craft from HGTV. These are super adorable and yet so easy to make. Bonus – they light the way for the trick or treaters and make the neighborhood walkways safe and secure. Click here for complete list of supplies and instructions.
Oct 11, 2017
If you’re thinking about building a new home, you probably want to stay there for a while after it’s completed. Let’s face it, moving is a chore, but we all know that our needs will change over the years and we’ll probably have to move again. We move from home to home for all kinds of reasons, but space requirements are probably the biggest consideration. The Forever Collection of home floor plans feature homes you can live in forever.
The Forever Collection features home floor plans that fit your lifestyle now and in the future. If you’re a young couple without children these homes will work well for you. There’s plenty of room to grow your family and when the kids have gone to college or are off on their own, the house will still fit your needs.
Because these homes are single level, you can age in place. In fact, there’s room for live-in help if needed.
The floor plans that make up the Forever Collection of homes include popular open concept floor plans with universal design standards. You can live in your home virtually barrier free – stepless entrances, one floor living, wider hallways and wider doorways lead these design standards.
By designing a home with your future in mind you can plan ahead. Only small modification may be needed down the line, saving you the cost of large scale remodel or the hassle of having to move. Click on the links below to see some of the floor plans from the Forever Collection.
Aspen 1576
Baron 1471
Crescent 1581
Princeton 1716
Want to learn more about the Forever Collection of floor plans? Why not schedule a call with one of our experts? Click here to fill out the form and schedule a call that’s convenient to you.
Oct 4, 2017
Fall has arrived and the fall colors should be peaking soon. Be sure to get out and enjoy the beauty of the fall season. If you’re looking for events in Omaha this October, you’ll be sure to find something fun for everyone to enjoy this month in Omaha.
Events in Omaha this October
Junkstock: Harvest Edition
When: October 6th – 8th, 2017
Where: Sycamore Farms
1150 River Rd Drive
Waterloo, NE
Junkstock is one of the premier junk, music & food festivals around the country. This year we are celebrating our 6th year of Junkstock and over the years we’ve discovered a few handy things that we thought we would share…
Bancroft Street Market’s Harvest Festival
When: October 7th, 2017
Where: Bancroft Street Market
2702 S. 10th St.
Omaha, NE
Celebrate fall with this harvest event including live music, street painting, yummy foods, and pumpkin painting.
Octoberfest at Mt. Crescent
When: October 8th, 2017
Where: Zipline Omaha
17026 Snowhill Lane
Honey Creek, IA
Enjoy a beer garden, seasonal selections by Keg Creek Brewing Co., food, a polka band & DJ and prizes for best costume! Zipline is open all day.
Coffee and Donut Festival
When: October 14th, 2017
Where: Hotel RL
3321 S 72nd Street
Omaha, NE
Omaha’s First Annual Coffee & Donut Festival where all the fried, sugary dough perfections meet the smooth roasted brews.
Enjoy all things coffee and donuts while you venture through THEMED COFFEE LOUNGES and sip your coffee or adult beverage.
Jam to LIVE MUSIC while having a blast catching a PHOTO OPPORTUNITY with Mr. Donut. KIDS ACTIVITIES include doughnut decorating, face painting, sprinkle painted nails, donut toss and much more!
hutchFEST 2017
When: October 21st, 2017
Where: Turner Park and Midtown Crossing
3102 Dodge Street
Omaha, NE
the 2nd annual hutchFEST is a one-day community and artisan celebration
in midtown crossing at turner park, with 150+ highly curated vendors from across the midwest. this vibrant gathering cultivates and showcases the freshest talent from the very best in modern maker design, quality handmade goods and relevant found objects.
get inspired, harness your creativity and experience this lively marketplace surrounded by local bites, local brews and live music.
Great Halloween Haunt
When: October 24th, 2017
Where: Durham Museum
801 S 10th Street
Omaha, NE
Join us for the annual Great Hall-oween Haunt for a frightfully fun time! Come in costume and trick-or-treat with historical characters throughout the museum. Make a craft and take a tour of the Haunted Train and the Cobweb Caboose…if you dare! Afterwards stop by the Swanson “Ghoulery” for a ghostly good time playing games such as Boo Bowling, Witch Hat Toss and Frankenstein Operation. Visit the Creepy Curator to discover what ghoulish odds and ends she has in her lab, and have a “blast” doing some spooky experiments with Dr. Oxygen. End the night with a performance by UNO’s The Moving Company and a costume conga line!
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