HBRA EVENTS HBRA NEWS HOBI Awards CELEBRATING 25 YEARS HOBI AWARDS HBRA OF CONNECTICUT HOME BUILDING INDUSTRY AWARDS The 25th Anniversary of the HOBI Awards was a wonderful night of celebration in the home building industry. The HBRA of Fairfield County is proud of our members who won a total of 83 HOBI awards for 2018. We wish a big congratulations to all the winners for their much deserved success. The 860 guests in attendance is a testament to the hard work put in by the HBRA of CT, Joanne Carroll and the judges who volunteer their time. We were also thrilled to unveil the new HOBI logo designed by our Marketing & Graphics Coordinator, Clare Michalak. Congratulations to all! If you would like a copy of the new logo, or photos from the night, please contact us! Tarzia Group, Nicola Tarzia Best Green Energy-Efficient Custom Home Bluewater Home Builders, Robert Sprouls Best Custom Home 3,000-4,000 SF Outstanding Special Purpose Room Best Spec Home $3-4 Million Blansfield Builders, Jim Blansfield Outstanding Custom Home 3,000-4,000 SF Best Residential Remodel $750,000 -1 Million East Coast Structures, John Sullivan Best In Town Custom Home 3,000-4,000 SF Domus Constructors, Chris Shea Best Remodeled Kitchen Fletcher Development, Ryan Fletcher Best Custom Home 4,000-5,000 SF J&J Custom Builder, Joe Filanowski Best Custom Home 5,000-6,000 SF Best Outdoor Feature SBP Homes, Doron Sabag Best Fairfield County Custom Home 6,000-7,000 SF Best Entry Best Custom Home 8,000-10,000 SF Best Custom Home Kitchen VAS Construction, Vincent Sciaretta Best Custom Home 7,000-8,000 SF Vita Design Group, Dave DeNomme Best Modern Custom Home 10 HBRA of Fairfield County | NOVEMBER 2018
Dibico Construction, Julio DiBiase Best Custom Home Over 15,000 SF Best Outdoor Living Environment Best Exterior Feature Best Interior Feature Best Accessory Building Best Marketed Home Best Special Promotion Best Builder Website Redwood Construction, Cassondra Stevenson Best New Old Custom Home Olsen Built Homes, Peter Olsen Best Spec Home $1-2 Million Michaud Group, Robert Michaud Best In Town Spec Home CCO Habitats, David Vynerib Best Spec Home $2-3 Million Milton Development, Ashley Shapiro Outstanding Contemporary Spec Home Outstanding Outdoor Feature Riverside Design Build, Marc Vandenhoeck Best Spec Home $4-5 Million Outstanding Interior/Exterior Feature Argus Development, Tim O’Malley Best Spec Home $5-6 Million Cole Harris Homes, Paul & Sitta Harris Best Spec Home Over $7 Million Best Spec Home Kitchen Outstanding Spec Home Over $7 Million Best Amenity Best In Town Remodel Best Residential Remodel $1-2 Million Toll Brothers Inc., Andrew LeGrant. Jason Gottlieb Best Traditional Community Best Single Family Home Over $800,000 Best 55+ Community Best Mid-Priced Townhouse Silver Heights Development, Seth Greenwald Best Cluster Community & Best Pocket Community Best Butler’s Pantry Love Where You Live, Danielle Bijanada Best Luxury Townhouse Community Best Luxury Townhouse Karp Associates, Arnold Karp Best Residential Remodel $150,000-250,000 Best New Commercial Building Community Service Award Hemingway Construction, Peter Sciaretta Best Residential Remodel $250,000-500,000 Best Luxury Bath Remodel Wernert Associates, Max Wernert Outstanding Contemporary Remodel $250,000- 500,000 Davenport Contracting, Brian P MacDonald Best Residential Remodel $500,000-750,000 NOVEMBER 2018 | HBRA of Fairfield County 11
Because you need the solution before the problem. Your business is one that deserves to be protected, and our job is to minimize risk. Tooher-Ferraris’ Home Builders Specialty Program has been supporting and protecting the reputations of builders and contractors for over 85 years. From general contractor construction liability and workers compensation, to commercial automobile insurance, subcontractor risk transfer, and OSHA compliance assistance, our high-touch service is delivered with honesty, integrity, and dependability. 22 HBRA of Fairfield County | NOVEMBER 2018 TOOFER.COM 43 Danbury Road, Wilton, CT 06897 1.800.899.0093
NAHB NEWS Veterans Forge New Paths with Home Building Careers Each year on Veterans Day, we give thoughts and words of appreciation to the brave men and women who sacrifice so much to defend our freedom and safety. In the home building industry, rather simply thanking them, many builders also are hiring veterans. The industry has long focused on training veterans through the Home Builders Institute, the nonprofit partner of NAHB. The HBI Military and Veterans Program operates on a number of U.S. military bases with training, certification and placement services focused on landing home building jobs for transitioning military members and veterans. Skills learned in the military can easily transfer to the home building industry. Marci O’Brien, a new home sales specialist in California, served in the Marine Corps from 1989 to 1994. After her duty was done, she got a real estate license and began participating in the housing boom in Southern California during the mid-90s. “The Marines gave me so much confidence that I just went around knocking on doors looking for a job,” she said. O’Brien found one pretty quickly and has been in the industry ever since. She noted that the Marines’ unofficial slogan “Improvise, Adapt and Overcome” helped her a great deal in 2008 and 2009 during the housing collapse. “The ability to confront challenges head-on and the thick skin I developed were invaluable during that time,” she said. Looking to join a supportive community, O’Brien became involved in the Sales & Marketing Council of the BIA of Southern California soon after starting in the industry, eventually serving on its board. That sense of belonging and accreditation also rings true for Air Force veteran Quint Lears, MIRM, who specializes in new home sales in New Mexico. “Continuing education and certification play a big role in military advancement,” he said. “So I continued that pattern in civilian life.” Lears also became involved with NAHB and his local Las Cruces (N.M.) HBA early in his career. He won the 2012 Salesperson of the Year at The Nationals and has recently published a book through Builder Books, Partnering with Brokers to Win More Sales. Lears said that his time serving his country gave him the skills and an appreciation of the home building industry that has propelled his home sales career. His experiences in the military helped him understand that the small steps needed to sell a home, like putting up signs, for instances, were all important in completing the mission. Read More Statement from NAHB Chairman Randy Noel on 2018 Midterm Elections Randy Noel, chairman of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) and a custom home builder from LaPlace, La., today issued the following statement regarding the 2018 midterm elections: “With the 2018 midterm elections behind us, NAHB looks forward to continue working with lawmakers on both sides of the political aisle to keep housing a national priority and to expand homeownership and rental housing opportunities for all Americans. To help achieve these important goals, Congress needs to address housing affordability concerns, ease regulatory burdens, and expand job training programs to ensure an ample supply of well-trained workers to build the nation’s homes.” Read More Builder Confidence Drops as Housing Affordability Issues Rise Growing affordability concerns resulted in builder confidence in the market for newly-built singlefamily homes falling eight points to 60 in November on the National Association of Home Builders/ Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI). Despite the sharp drop, builder sentiment still remains in positive territory. Read More NOVEMBER 2018 | HBRA of Fairfield County 23
Pictured at left: Andersen® Architectural Collection E-Series hinged patio doors, sidelights and transom windows with painted White interiors; Pictured at right (top and bottom): Andersen 400 Series casement, awning and picture windows with prefinished Black interiors and 400 Series casement and transom windows with painted/prefinished Black interiors Get the Distinctive Home You’ve Always Dreamed of From our best-selling 400 Series to the true luxury of the Architectural Collection, turn every window and door into a design opportunity with dramatic sizes, dynamic shapes, unlimited colors and exotic woods. “ENERGY STAR” is a registered trademark of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. “Andersen” and all other marks where denoted are trademarks of Andersen Corporation. ©2018 Andersen Corporation. All rights reserved. MS1808_0458 Explore the possibilities at andersenwindows.com 8 29 Prospect Street Ridgefield, CT 06877 203.438.2626 ridgefieldsupply.com M–F 7 AM – 5 PM, Sat. 8 AM – 4 PM, Sun. – Closed
STATE LEGISLATIVE NEWS The 2019 Connecticut legislative session will open on January 9, 2018. We will have a new Governor and a largely new legislature. Twenty percent of the 151member House Chamber are freshmen legislators and 7 of the 25 member Senate Chamber are freshman. We must take extra care to meet and educate our local legislators, especially the newly elected officials, on issues affecting our industry. Please reach out to us if there are state regulations or codes that are impacting your business so that we are aware of any challenges and can advocate effectively on your behalf. Your membership supports lobbyists in Hartford to be your voice but we need to hear from you. Click here to find your legislator Democratic Legislators Will Push Liberal Agenda Of Paid Leave, Minimum Wage Hike And Pot After making major gains at the polls, Democratic legislators are reenergized to push forward a liberal agenda they believe can be enacted next year under Gov.-elect Ned Lamont. Democrats are advocating for key bills they are calling the Big Five: raising the minimum wage, enacting paid family and medical leave, erecting electronic highway tolls, approving sports betting and legalizing recreational marijuana. Three of those items would raise money, and some moderate Democrats think those increases should be the bulk of the revenue raisers — rather than hiking a variety of other taxes as the state faces a projected deficit of $2 billion in the next fiscal year. Democrats picked up 12 seats in the state House of Representatives for a 92-59 advantage. They also gained five seats in the state Senate for a 23-13 margin, breaking an 18-18 tie for the past two years that allowed Republicans to block plans for tolls, sports betting and legalized marijuana, as well as increases in taxes and spending. Read More What’s the Matter With Connecticut? Since the era of “The Man in the Grey Flannel Suit,” Connecticut has played an outsize role in defining the American suburb. High-quality, low-density living remains one of the state’s chief draws and suburban voters are one of its most important constituencies. Across the country, suburban voters fed up with President Trump broke heavily for the Democrats in the midterms. That happened in Connecticut, too, but it wasn’t a “change” election in the Nutmeg State. Rather, it was a “more of the same” election. Democrats retained control of the governorship and strengthened their position in the state Legislature Republicans suffered one of their most demoralizing losses in the 26th state Senate district, in suburban Fairfield County. Twenty-two-year-old Democrat Will Haskell defeated the incumbent Republican, 68-yearold Toni Boucher. Ms. Boucher has served in state office for about as long as Mr. Haskell has been alive. The district, which had been sending Republicans to Hartford since the 1970s, includes several “Gold Coast” communities, all or in part, such as Weston, New Canaan and Westport. Mr. Haskell’s campaign was buoyed by an adulatory profile in the New York Times and an endorsement by President Obama. Though he had been considering law school after graduating Georgetown University in May, Mr. Haskell instead set his sights on state office, inspired, he says, by a desire to “get involved in the fight against Trump’s agenda.” Ms. Boucher was assumed to be safe because of her many years of constituent service and embrace of the classic local brand of Republicanism—social moderation and fiscal conservatism. Read More NOVEMBER 2018 | HBRA of Fairfield County 25
RE love YOUR HOME RingsEnd.com 800 390 1000 NOVEMBER 2018 | HBRA of Fairfield County 32
1 Publizr