February 2025
2025 Annual Golf Outing
The New Home & Remodeling Show Committee is getting excited about this year's event! If you haven’t yet, now is the time to place an ad in the official show guide. There are still a few exhibit booths and sponsorship opportunities available—don’t miss your chance to showcase your business. Visit 2025 New Home & Remodeling Show for more details and secure your spot today!
Time to start registering for the Annual Golf Outing to be held on May 15th at Edgewood. Along with foursomes, sponsorships are also available and can be secured online at 2025 SAHBA Golf Outing.
2025 New Home & Remodeling Show
Leadership List 2025 Board of Directors President – Todd Rhoades, Parksite/Tyvek 1st Vice President – Chris Wellman, Wellman’s Lawn Care 2nd Vice President – Jamie Siemer, Henson Robinson Co. Secretary – Susan Day, Exciting Windows by Susan Day Treasurer – Matt Seman, United Community Bank Past President – Chris Hartsook, Big Dog Construction Director – Anne Smith, CCDC/Central Il Services Director – Fritz Pfister, Re/Max Professionals of Springfield, Pfister Team Director – Jon Stewart, Midwest Garage Door Director – Michael Trader, Flooring America Director – Brian Mulrooney, US Marble & Granite Director – Robert Ferriell, CACC Director – Brandon Koishor, Henson Robinson Co. Director – Kelly Greeley, Capitol Media Group Director – Nick Kelton, Helitech Waterproofing & Structural Repair Executive Officer - Kathy Ridley, CAE
Calendar of Events 2025 2/19, Wednesday - Board Meeting, IBYC 3/26, Wednesday - Board Meeting & GMM, Motorheads 4/5 & 6 - New Home & Remodeling Show 5/15, Thursday - Golf Outing, Edgewood 5/28, Wednesday - Board Meeting & GMM 7/23, Wednesday - Board Meeting 8/20, Wednesday - Sports Clay Shoot, Jacksonville Sportsman’s Club 9/24, Wednesday - Board Meeting & GMM 11/19, Wednesday - Board Meeting & Annual Meeting 12/11, Thursday - Installment Dinner GMM - General Membership Meeting The Board has eliminated the charge for all GMMs in 2025. Registration will be requested to make sure enough food is available for our members and guests. Looking forward to seeing more members at our GMMs in 2025!
Single-Family Starts Finish 2024 on a High Note
Fueled by solid demand, single-family construction moved higher in December despite several headwinds facing the industry, including high mortgage rates, elevated financing costs for builders and a lack of buildable lots. Overall housing starts increased 15.8% in December to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.50 million units, according to a report from HUD and the U.S. Census Bureau. This is the highest rate since February 2024. The December reading of 1.50 million starts is the number of housing units builders would begin if development kept this pace for the next 12 months. Within this overall number, single-family starts increased 3.3% to a 1.05 million seasonally adjusted annual rate. The multifamily sector, which includes apartment buildings and condos, increased 61.5% to a 449,000 pace. Total housing starts for 2024 were 1.36 million, a 3.9% decline from the 1.42 million total from 2023. Single-family starts in 2024 totaled 1.01 million, up 6.5% from the previous year. Multifamily starts ended the year down 25% from 2023. Looking at regional housing starts data for 2024, combined single-family and multifamily starts were 9.1% higher in the Northeast, 0.1% lower in the Midwest, 5.2% lower in the South and 7.7% lower in the West. The number of single-family homes under construction was down 5.3% from a year ago, at 641,000 homes. The number of apartments under construction was down 21% from a year ago, at 790,000. The count of apartments under construction peaked in July 2023 at 1.02 million and has been trending lower since that time.
Conservatorship Agreements Revised The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) and the Treasury Department on Jan. 3 announced amendments to the Preferred Stock Purchase Agreements that govern the conservatorships of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (the Enterprises). The amendments set out a process meant to ensure a smooth transition from conservatorship and reassure stakeholders that the Enterprises’ eventual release from conservatorship will minimize disruption to the market.
Make Time at IBS to Watch NAHB Student Competition The NAHB Student Competition at the International Builders’ Show (IBS) features contests between the sharpest up-and-coming land developers, project managers and designers from NAHB’s Student Chapters. Students present and defend professional building proposals, which are reviewed, critiqued and judged by a panel of construction company executives. All IBS attendees are encouraged to attend the Student Competition. The contest starts on Monday, Feb. 24 and ends Wednesday, Feb. 26. The full schedule is available here and open to all attendees. Beneficial Ownership Info Not Required at This Time The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), which oversees the implementation of the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA), on Jan. 24 issued the following statement: “In light of a recent federal court order, reporting companies are not currently required to file beneficial ownership information with FinCEN and are not subject to liability if they fail to do so while the order remains in force. However, reporting com- panies may continue to voluntarily submit beneficial ownership information reports.”
NAHB Promotes Housing Priorities Even before President Trump took office, NAHB was meeting with the president’s transition team to promote its policy agenda. NAHB submitted a detailed housing policy paper to the Trump team. NAHB looks forward to working with President Trump and his administration to enact policies that will enable builders to increase the supply of single-family and multifamily for-sale and for-rent housing to bring down rising housing costs and meet the needs of the American people.
Pushing Back on DOE Gas Ban NAHB strongly supports congressional resolutions introduced in both chambers of Congress that seek to block the Biden administration’s recent attempt to ban natural gas water heaters. The Congressional Review Act (CRA) resolution of disapproval regarding the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Final Rule establishing Standards for Gas-Fired Instantaneous Water Heaters was introduced in the House by Rep. Gary Palmer (R-Ala.) and in the Senate by Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas).
The NAHB/Westlake Royal Remodeling Market Index (RMI) posted a reading of 68 for the fourth quarter of 2024, up five points compared to the previous quarter. Remodelers are more optimistic about the market than they were earlier in 2024, corroborated by NAHB’s recent analysis of home improvement loan applications. Demand in many parts of the country was stronger than usual for the fall season, especially demand for larger projects, with leads coming in after the uncertainty about the November elections was removed. Not only did the current conditions index for $50,000-plus projects show the greatest increase during the quarter, but the share of remodelers doing whole house remodeling reached a record high of 62%. An index number above 50 indicates a higher proportion of respondents view conditions as good rather than poor.
Top 5 Most Cited OSHA Violations Below are the top 5 OSHA violations for fiscal year 2024, including the standard cited and the number of violations. 1) Fall Protection – General Requirements (1926.501): 6,307 violations 2) Hazard Communication (1910.1200): 2,888 3) Ladders (1926.1053): 2,573 4) Respiratory Protection (1910.134): 2,470 5) Lockout/Tagout (1910.147): 2,443 Builders, remodelers and others can use a variety of free safety resources from NAHB, including our Jobsite Safety mobile app, our Video Toolbox Talks and more, to help keep workers safe.
Remodeling Market Sentiment Improves in Q4 of 2024
$40 Million in Member Savings NAHB member benefits saw another banner year in 2024, as members saved more than $40 million through the Member Savings Program. With an expanding lineup of exclusive offers, the program remains dedicated to delivering significant savings to NAHB members in 2025 and beyond. During the past year, the Member Savings Program introduced sev- eral exciting new partnerships with leading companies including Microsoft Office, Sam’s Club, BMW, Holman Fleet & Automotive Services, and Indeed. These additions reflect NAHB’s ongoing commitment to meeting members' evolving needs. NAHB is actively pursuing new partnerships to enhance the value of membership.
NAHB Commends President Trump’s Order on Housing
Carl Harris, chairman of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) and a custom home builder from Wichita, Kan., issued the following statement after President Trump issued an executive order on housing relief: “NAHB commends President Trump for acting on day one to make housing a national priority by issuing an executive order that seeks to lower the cost and increase the supply of housing. President Trump understands that America is facing a housing affordability crisis and the only way out of this crisis is to remove barriers like unnecessary and costly regulations that are raising housing costs and preventing builders from building more attainable, affordable housing. "NAHB has released a 10-point housing plan to remove the impediments to increasing the nation’s housing supply and we look forward to working with the Trump administration and Congress to enact sound policies that will allow builders to boost housing production and affordability.”