The Changing Landscape “This is not a forecast. A forecast is a prediction, the validity of which my ego and I are professionally responsible for. What I offer here is speculation – something that is likely enough to write about but not so likely that my ego hangs in the balance.” – George Friedman “When […]
What if the housing shortage era is ending for some metros? Read More »
Securing homeowners’ insurance is reshaping the homebuying process itself. Premiums are rising, carriers are pulling back from entire states and buyers are increasingly discovering, sometimes days before closing, that the home they plan to purchase is either too expensive to insure or cannot be insured at all. What was once a routine, last-step check is
Homeowners Insurance is Reshaping the Real Estate Transaction Read More »
The fight over Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s sweeping housing reform agenda is intensifying as both sides harden their positions. Supporters and detractors by the thousands delivered their opening arguments Thursday at the first major hearing on Pritzker’s six-bill package. Pritzker’s BUILD plan seeks to lower costs by making construction easier and faster statewide. It would
Pritzker’s honor: Illinois housing reform fight intensifies Read More »
Confronting heavier incentives, price cuts, tepid demand and margin pressure, PulteGroup opened the year with a mix-shift pivot that leans more heavily on build-to-order and active adult sales. Pulte’s Q1 2026 earnings call, held on Thursday, indicates that the nation’s third-largest homebuilder by sales volume made progress on this goal, despite an added layer of
PulteGroup targets margin stability through an upward mix shift Read More »
The mid-spring earnings cycle has produced a common-language reality check for America’s public homebuilders: the operating backdrop worsened faster than many management teams expected. In such a context of nearly-universal challenge, doing less-worse may count as a win. Meritage Homes’ Q1 2026 numbers serve as a case in point Orders fell 5% year over year,
Meritage Q1 2026 shows why incentives are the new battlefield Read More »
In its quarterly earnings report a few months ago, M/I Homes business executives said the top-15-ranked homebuilder would maintain a spec-heavy approach – carefully and methodically – to build sales momentum leading up to and into the spring selling season. The latest quarterly financial and operational performance attests to M/I’s embrace of that strategy, as
M/I Homes hews to its order pace; margins come under pressure Read More »
A California home builder sought to build three additional houses on lots it had owned for more than two decades in a coastal county. That should have been easy. It had already built four nearby homes. But it wasn’t. Years of court hearings followed when a state agency overrode San Luis Obispo County’s authority and
California court curbs Coastal Commission on building permits Read More »
Tactical discounts, escalating incentives, absorption-at-any-cost strategies, … you all well know the routine of buying sales and making next to no money in Spring 2026. But that’s not for everybody. Exceptions are out there, public and private. Taylor Morrison has chosen a playbook and is well into executing a game plan that leans on the
Taylor Morrison pares incentives and leans into buyer choice Read More »
Success in business is rarely a solo act. Great careers are often shaped by great mentors, and exceptional teams make for exceptional companies. Allan Merrill, Chairman, President and CEO of Beazer Homes, attests to both truisms. Under Merrill’s leadership, Beazer Homes has become a leader in delivering durable, energy-efficient homes, becoming the first national homebuilder
Beazer Homes CEO Allan Merrill on sustainability and affordability Read More »
Michigan lawmakers returned from spring recess with housing affordability clearly in their sights. A bipartisan group shepherding a package of bills this week picked up strong support from a coalition of housing advocates and business groups, including the Home Builders Association of Michigan. That backing could help pass an initiative Gov. Gretchen Whitmer launched earlier this
Support grows for Whitmer housing zoning reform bills in Michigan Read More »