The September Edition of the Housing News is Online

Read the September edition of the Housing News by clicking here. In this month's edition you'll learn more about the upcoming Awards Banquet. Join us on Tuesday, September 15 at the Clarion Hotel as we honor the industry's best. You'll also find details about a new member benefit, the Home Builder Purchasing Program. There are some tremendous opportunities to save money on cellular phone service, mailing services and much more.

There's also important news about your Housing News publication. We are making some significant changes to the format and delivery of this primary form of organization to member communication. This will include new innovative and interactive forms of advertising to promote your business to the industry.

You'll also find lots of other details about upcoming HBA events and programs including:
-The Remodelors Council Fishing Tournament on Wed., September 9
(Registration Form)
-The Fall Golf Tournament on September 22
(Registration Form)
-The Certified Green Professional Designation Classes Sept. 9-11
(Registration Form)
-CBBT Sporting Clay Tournament on Friday, October 9
(Registration Form)

In Membership News, the following new associate applications have been received:

Summit Roofing & Roll Forming
Solar, Metal Roofing Michael Wyckoff
1462 N. Lafontaine, Springfield MO 65802
417.873.9191 SPONSOR: Dan Piddington

Whirlpool Corporation
Whirlpool Appliance Sales Ben Meekma
988 S. Ballard St., Nixa MO 65714
417.807.7317 SPONSOR: Judy Bilyeu

Joe’s Carpet
Interior Decorating/Flooring
Sherrie Gillen
1540 E. Evergreen St., Springfield MO 65803
417.873.9222

All-Brite Solutions, LLC
Home Improvement Jeff Housley
540 S. Cavalier, Springfield MO 65804
417.862.7900 SPONSOR: GINGER CLARK

Don't miss the TAKE 5 Profile with HBA Member Brookline Doorworks on page 6!

Charlyce Ruth Celebrates 10 Years on HBA Staff!

HBA of Greater Springfield Operations Manager Charlyce Ruth this month celebrated 10 years as an employee of the HBA. She was honored at the August Board of Directors meeting, but was suprised by a special party with many of her best HBA friends on Wednesday, August 19.

Charlyce's friends know that she has a soft spot in her heart for penguins and a good Margarita, which led to the rather unconventional combined party theme of Margarita-Penguins. Friends suprised Charlyce when she returned to the office from an elaborate wild goose chase that was designed to get her out of the way long enough to set up the festivities. Her friends greeted her wearing Charlyce face photos as sandwich boards, and promptly participated in a "How Well do you Know Charlyce" trivia quiz.

In case you couldn't make it to the party, below are a few photos of the event:

Discover Green Ideas To Grow On at HBA's Product Showcase Night

Learn more from industry professionals about products and processes involved in building a green home. "Green Ideas to Grow On" is the theme of the 2009 HBA Green Product Showcase Night on Tuesday, August 18 at the Clarion Hotel, 3333 S. Glenstone Ave. This year, HBA members can attend the show during a members-only time, 5:30 pm to 7 pm, for a light buffet and exclusive time to visit the exhibitors. Prizes including golf balls, the book "Go Green, Live Rich," and a water-efficient shower head will be given away during that timeframe. The meal cost is $15. From 7 pm to 8:30 pm, the event will also be open to the public by invitation. To RSVP or for more information, call 881-3711 or email carrie@springfieldhba.com.

Awards Committee Selects Multiple HBA Award Recipients

Members of the HBA Awards committee met recently to select the 2009 Administrative Support Person of the Year, the Foreman of the Year and the Manager of the Year, as well as other awards to be presented at the annual HBA Member Awards Banquet. All decisions made by the HBA Awards committee are held secret until the evening of the annual HBA Awards Banquet -- held this year at the Clarion Hotel on Tuesday, September 15. RSVP for the Banquet by clicking here.

The committee also reviewed current sponsors for the HBA Member Awards Banquet. At this time, there are two sponsorships available for the Social Hour and five Table Top Sponsorships remaining. Please contact Charlyce Ruth (881-3711, email) for more information.

Associates Council Selects 2009 HBA Builder Member of the Year

Members of the Associate Council met to select the 2009 HBA Builder Member of the Year. The award is the highest annual honor awarded by the HBA of Greater Springfield to an active builder member. The selection of the Council is held secret until it is revealed the evening of the annual HBA Awards Banquet (held this year on September 15 - RSVP Attendance Here).

The Council also reviewed membership applications received from potential new members. The Council recommends the following companies to be accepted for membership in the HBA of Greater Springfield:

• John A. Barnett Enterprises, LLC, John Barnett, Sponsor Brian Willaby, Work Type: Concrete

• Border X’pressions, Michael McTeer, Sponsor Robert Felton, Work Type: Decorative Concrete

• The Closet Co., LLC, Michelle Carr-Cook, Sponsor Mat Wehner, Work Type: Custom Storage Systems

• Missouri Valley Plaster, Inc., Mark Wood, Sponsor Brett Godfrey, Work Type: Convention Stucco, Stone, Painting

Local HBA Membership Retention Rate of 85% Ranks Third-Best Nationally

Nationwide, HBA membership is declining amid the challenging residential construction economy. But locally, retention rates for the HBA of Greater Springfield remain among the best in the country, thanks in large part to the work of the HBA's membership committee. Year-to-date retention throughout the National Association of Home Builders stands at 66%. But the HBA of Greater Springfield is outperforming that retention average by a whopping 19 percentage points - with a local retention rate of 85% - even in today's challenging economic circumstances. That's good for third-best among all HBAs of similar size nationwide.


At the August 5 HBA Membership committee meeting, committee members considered ways build on that success. The committee is evaluating new ways to better stay in touch with the membership on a more regular basis. The committee plans to survey the new members in six month intervals to help evaluate how effectively these new members are engaging in their HBA membership. Membership committee members will then make personal calls to new members to share information about a current member benefit, and to ask if the new member has any questions or concerns.


In other committee business:

• Plans are underway for the September 18 HBA Builder/Remodelor-Only breakfast. Breakfast for the event is provided to any builder member at no charge. RSVP Requested. The program for the event will include a discussion of the current and future lending environment for builders and developers.

• The membership committee is recommending combining the quarterly meetings of the HBA Builders Council with the quarterly "Builders-only" breakfasts. The goal of combining the meetings is to avoid duplication and to use members’ time more efficiently. A regular agenda item at the Builders-only events will be to solicit input on any issues for upcoming I&E agendas. Otherwise, Builders Council would be convened only upon request for special business such as inspection of new construction for the purposes of new membership, etc.

• A list of members who are eligible for renewal, but have not yet renewed their membership, was reviewed by the committee. Committee members will make follow-up phone calls to these members to encourage membership renewal.

Lead Paint Warnings Now Required of Remodelers

At the August 4 meeting of the HBA Remodelors Council, members reviewed contract language from the National Association of Home Builders to address remodeling where disturbance of lead paint is necessary. The language must be added to all remodeling contracts in order to be compliant with the law. HBA members can download the recommended contract language by clicking here.

The law requires remodelors to provide some customers with a copy of the EPA publication “Renovate Right: Important Lead Hazard Information for Families, Child Care Providers and Schools.” This publication also was reviewed discussed by the Remodelors Council at its meeting. This publication must be given to all customers that own a home built prior to 1978 and that the remodeling project is disturbing more than six square feet of interior wall space and/or twenty square feet of exterior wall space.

In other Remodelors Council business, details for the 2009 Home Remodeling EXPO were reviewed and discussed. Andy Flint, Julie Mercer and Chris Oberhansley volunteered to contact vendors from 2008 that have not committed to displaying in the 2009 EXPO and encourage them to participate. It was noted that the remodelers greatly appreciate the suppliers and subcontractors that display – it makes it easier for the remodelers to show the quality of product used in their projects and helps future customers make decisions. Andy Flint volunteered to coordinate speakers for the seminars at the 2009 EXPO.

NOTE: The regularly scheduled September Remodelors Council meeting has been cancelled, due to scheduling conflicts.

Meeting with Division of Work Comp next step in fair enforcement of insurance requirement

The HBA’s Government Affairs committee is asking local legislators to facilitate a meeting with the Missouri Division of Workers’ Compensation to review the 'Affidavit of Exemption' form currently used by any jurisdiction that issues a business license. The goal of the meeting is to pursue any administrative avenue available to petition for changing the form in a way that more accurately defines “employee” under the “doctrine of statutory employment” observed in Missouri (a sole proprietor normally qualifies as having employees if there if they utilize sub-contractors, family members or even volunteers).

While all HBA of Greater Springfield members must carry workers compensation insurance to qualify for membership, many others in the industry mistakenly believe they are exempt from carrying the insurance under Missouri law. For detailed information on the subject, download "Doing Business in Missouri: Hiring Employees," a publication of the University of Missouri Extension.

In other Government Affairs Committee business:

• Committee members volunteered to make followup calls to fellow members encouraging them to participate in the CBBT Sporting Clay Shoot as sponsors, shooters, etc.

• The committee reviewed the NAHB’s position on “Cap and Trade” legislation recently approved by the US House. This bill, which will be taken up by the Senate in September, will have a devastating impact on homeownership and the economy by unnecessarily driving up the cost of new homes.

The HBA Builders Council also discussed these issues. The council also discussed the development of a model form for builders to use to document that a fire sprinkler system was offered to each of their customers (along with any follow up information such as the cost of installation should a buyer request it.) The HBA will send out this model form to builder members prior to August 28 (the day the law becomes effective for new homes meeting the specified criteria).

The council also discussed appraisal issues and made a formal recommendation to the HBA Board of Directors to pursue steps to establish a database containing relevant information about custom homes, which could then be accessed exclusively by professional appraisers. The inclusion of sales information on custom homes would allow for a broader range of potentially comparable homes for appraisers to use when conducting home appraisals. The data should lead to more accurate appraisals.