Construction Management
You Hear More Than Air Leaking from the Housing Bubble
By Karyn Elliott
Sep 12, 2007 - 6:34:00 PM

With the latter measure of the nation's economic health dropping more than at any time since January 1997. Right about now, common sense should be telling you that now is the time for you to take control of the business end of business, set your self up to be ahead of the game when housing stats start to equal out. AND THEY WILL... BUT DON'T COUNT ON IT ANY TIME SOON...

The monthly report on new residential construction issued by the U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development showed permits for privately-owned building permits for residential construction being issued at a rate drop of 2.8 percent below the revised June rate of 22.6 percent below the revised estimate in July one year ago.

Builders were holding around 194,000 permits on which construction had not yet begun in July compared to 206,900 in June. A staggering 103,800 of those permits were in the Southern states as were nearly 50 percent of the 117,500 unused permits for single family construction.

So why are you just sitting there watching your money fly out the window???

Not surprisingly, builder confidence is also eroding. The latest National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI) took another hit in August, reaching its lowest level in over16 years.

The HMI asks builders to respond to three measures of confidence each month; how they measure current single-family home sales and what they expect from those sales over the next six months - both on a scale of "good," "fair," or "poor," and whether current traffic of prospective buyers is "high to very high," "average," or "low to very low." Each measure is ranked separately and then used to calculate a seasonally adjusted index. Any number over 50 for the components or the main index indicates that more builders view sales conditions as positive rather than negative.

Following a slide that has gone on for months, the HMI declined another two points in August to 22, the lowest level the 20 year survey has seen since January, 1991. The index gauging current single-family home sales fell a single point, to 23, while the index gauging sales expectations for the next six months declined two points to 32 and that gauging traffic of prospective buyers declined three points to 16.

National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) President Brian Catalde said, "Builders realize that issues related to mortgage credit cost and availability have become more acute, filtering some prospective buyers out of the market and prompting others to delay their decision to purchase a new home. Builders are responding by trimming prices and stepping up non-price incentives to bolster sales and limit cancellations, although we're dealing in a difficult market environment."

NAHB Chief Economist David Seiders cited the subprime mortgage situation as being a part of the problem but said, "... the government-related parts of the mortgage market still are functioning well and the underlying economic fundamentals promise to remain solid for some time - providing support to the longer-run housing outlook. We now expect to see home sales return to an upward path by early next year and we expect housing starts to begin a gradual recovery process by mid-2008. From there, the market will have plenty of room to grow in 2009 and beyond."

However, we don't seem to be looking at the housing inventory that this crisis has created. Taking this into account, I would say it is time for contractors to open their eyes and see the full picture. Truth is...even in the unlikely event that the Chief Economist is correct on his timing, this mortgage crisis has change the housing market forever.

NOW... is the perfect time for all contractors who are feeling the heat from the housing bubble burst, to re-examine the way you are doing business. I know you are faced with the frustration of endless quotes and hand holding only to lose the customer to someone else who comes in with a low ball number.

JUST THINK...for one moment how powerful it would be if you spent some time now to discover exactly what motivates customers to buy at your price alone! There is a better way to solve your problems, expand your business, make more money, grab the best customers for yourself and work less stressful hours.

I call it the...TIME TO EDUCATE YOURSELF NOW PLAN!!!

Now I have been close to the construction business for most of my life. My entire family is builders and I work with builders all over the country on marketing and business building techniques. I see the pain everywhere from the housing slump. And I have never seen a time more appropriate for the tradesmen of the Construction Industry to put down the hammer, saw, and nails for just one moment to hear this message.

You certainly know your trade, but do you really know how to run a successful business???

So...I have decided to write this article to offer up some opportunities for you to grow your construction business beyond where you stand now and secure it's growth into the future, placing your business in a place to where the slumping market will only seem like a problem for the other guys, the ones who haven't taken the opportunity to learn, educate, and grow.

First I want to talk to you about coaching, now before you shake your head, just think for a moment about the most successful people in this world... Take Tiger Woods for instance, when Tiger was hitting a down slide the first thing he did was hire a coach to get him back to where he needed to be.

Think of actors, actresses, singers, politicians and entrepreneurs... Coaches aren't just for top performing athletes, and political geniuses. "Regular people" have and need coaches that push them to new heights, that help them find that slight edge, tweak their performance, and push them to more success. They need someone who will listen to them, assess their situation, and push their performance to the peak of their potential. Coaching is about unlocking a person's potential to maximize his or her performance; coaching is about helping people learn to succeed and excel on their own.

If you could have achieved your desired life without a coach - chances are you would be living that life now! As a leader in a leadership roll you started out with lofty dreams, fervent goals and a desire to make a difference in your life. But somewhere along the line you drifted off course. Perhaps you lost sight of your original purpose. Maybe life changes blew you in a different direction. Or perhaps you never prioritized the steps to get there in the first place!

Stepping up to the plate for Contractors is one such coach... Henry A. Goudreau has spent the past 12 years presenting his forward thinking methods and techniques on managing successful construction companies. Millions of dollars in building renovation and construction is under way all across the US. Construction is taking a beating right now, you need an edge and The Contractors Business Coach Henry Goudreau is busy helping numerous contractors achieve enormous successes with their companies through his exclusive "Golden Hard Hat and www.Ask Henry Goudreau.com Programs." You know the work is out there; perhaps it is just a matter of re-positioning yourself in the marketplace…just the kind of maneuver a coach can help with. Mr. Goudreau has written numerous articles for trade magazines as well as a training manuals for the National Association of Homebuilders, and has written his own book "How to Market and Sell Your Construction Services Like Magic!"

Henry grew up with a father who was successful in the construction industry, so picking-up his fathers knack for numbers was natural. After college Henry acquired his experience working with other contractors, noting the major business mistakes they made along the way. In his early twenties Henry decided to take his experience and the mistakes of others and start his own successful contracting business. "I always kept asking myself this one important question, is there a better way to do this?" Goudreau says, "What I found, particularly in the construction industry, was that a lot of people who have come up as business owners have come up through the trades or the technical aspects of the business such as estimators or engineers. They lacked management skills but had big aspirations."

So how can a coach like Henry Goudreau help you build your Contractors business into the success you intended from the start? Specialized coaching provides you with focus and clarity, minimizing obstacles to the results you desire.

A coach can be a confidant... a coach can help celebrate your successes, and can be a source of strength when you fail.

A coach can help you see your blind spots... and help you to develop and implement strategies, systems and plans that work.

A coach can provide objective feedback... a coach's main tool for effecting change is feedback. By communicating what they see a coach can provide both positive and negative reinforcement.

A coach can keep you accountable... If you set objectives but then don't fulfill them, your coach is there to keep you accountable and/or redirect you onto a new course to follow.

A coach can be a sounding board... Unlike well meaning friends and significant others, your coach will always tell you the truth and work solely on YOUR goals and dreams.

A coach can be another source of creative ideas... someone you can brainstorm with, try out new ideas and opportunities on.

A coach can help you create your vision... a coach will help you turn business and personal obstacles into successes.


Simply put, coaching builds Successful Business Owners out of Ordinary Owners.

So... before you let all your profits escape you like the air from the housing bubble, decide NOW to start mastering better business skills as the most prudent course of action for YOU, a construction business owner in this slumping market...what are you waiting for?

Call your coach today!
941-377-1254