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Show r c;;: Open Q House Tv m TV sUiJf ls s1 'or n up vi'ar" in rul rsUlf IL during ISS3 v'" normally S(Mis'iv4Uvf analysis are fipressms an unusual de-' de-' grff ol optimism "The latest month's ad-yjiu ad-yjiu of construction con-y con-y 'ifjolinj! solidified the on--4-inJ -off recovery that , 'began m 1982's second r quarter," said t;wRt A Christie, vice president and q chief economist for K W L'lVde - a division of I'McOu Hill Information I Svstems Co '"FallinK mortgage imer-est imer-est rates and the proposed public works jobs program are strengthening this ten- nous recovery and should ,, keep it going well into 1983 ' With monetary restraints " lifted and with new funding lor public works, the con-u con-u V siruclion sector is finally capable of filling its tradi- " Uoral role of leading the rest of the economy out of . recession " The president of the Na- uoral Association of Home Builders (.NAHB) agrees "" nth the McGraw-Hill eonomist in that assess- a, sent "If interest rates and jnces continue to subline is they have for the past several months, then 19H3 will be the year when housing hous-ing turns the corner of the most devastating recession since World War II," says Kred Napolitano, NAM! president. Christie, whose predictions predic-tions are watched and considered con-sidered carefully by industry indus-try leaders, recently raised his sights a bit when viewing view-ing home building activity in future months. "With still more room for mortgage rates to fall, this strong response of the housing market suggests that most 1983 housing forecasts now clustered around 14 million housing units - can safely be raised a notch," he said Most economists feel a healthy upturn in home building and sales this year could be a good therapy for all economic ills. In California, the president presi-dent of that state's Building Build-ing Industry Association believes there is a clear parallel between the state's general economic health and the status of the home building industry. "Most of the job and tax revenue losses California has suffered since 1979 can be traced to the slump in residential construction," said Dennis O'Brien, presi- An up year ahead d-nt of the California Building Industry Association. Associa-tion. "The impact of this decline de-cline has been felt not only in construction and related industries, but in the general gener-al economy in the form of reduced economic activity, high levels of unemployment unemploy-ment and reduced tax revenues rev-enues to state and local governments. "A strong housing recovery recov-ery in 1983 could reduce the ranks of the unemployed unem-ployed substantially and cut the unemployment rate from an estimated 11.5 percent per-cent to 8.5 percent," O'Brien predicted. "It would also dramatically affect business activity and income in the state, which in turn affects tax revenues reve-nues at all levels of government." gov-ernment." Q. What is an "electronic listing?" A. When a home is listed for sale by a broker, it is usually submitted to and processed by a local or regional re-gional Multiple Listing Service (MLS). As an MLS listing, the full description and photo of the property is printed in an "MLS book," which is distributed regularly (every week or ' two) to all MLS member brokers and salespeople. Most Industry leaders feel the MLS book will evolve into a strictly electronic elec-tronic (computerized) listing list-ing system within the next decade. In other words, information in-formation on a specific type of home in a specified area can be quickly produced pro-duced by a broker for a prospective purchaser at the touch of a few computer comput-er terminal keys. This type of information is now offered by an increasing in-creasing number of brokers. bro-kers. But in the future, say many industry leaders, the electronic listing will totally total-ly replace the MLS book. Q. Is home remodeling till going strong? Are remodeling re-modeling contractors generally gen-erally doing good business? A. The answer is yes to both questions. Even when home sales were in a dismal slump, remodeling activity remained strong and healthy. Last year, the average residential remod-eler remod-eler grossed a bit over 1297,000 on 44 remodeling jobs. Inquiries are invited and may be answered in this column. Write: James M. Woodard, 6862 S. Zephyr St., Littleton, CO 80123. |
