Hi zliener,
This week’s Construction Financial Manager Review (CFM Review) features a selection of interesting articles from across the industry this week.
Our goal is to make it easy for all construction financial professionals to stay informed about what matters to them.
Enjoy your weekend!
Peter Menge | zlien Content Manager
Lien Rights Made EasyTM | 866.720.5436 | peter@
Industry Spotlight
Key articles from across the web on a variety of construction industry topics
Focus on Housing / Residential Construction
Not only is housing a huge segment of the construction industry (just over half of all private construction is classified as residential), it’s a huge part of the overall U.S. economy as well. Housing starts is one of the most-watched leading economic indicators, and residential construction is a big deal for zlien‘s customers as well.
That’s why we thought we’d use this week’s CFM Review to share a few of the housing and residential construction stories that have caught our eye recently.
To wit:
Baby Boomer-Led Renovation Bubble?
Aging-in-Place Remodeling Sees Its Popularity Continue to Grow via ConstructionDive
Home renovators, please take note: “Over the next 20 years, one-third of U.S. heads-of-household will be 65 or older, with the number of HHs age 80 and above projected to double from 7.8 million in 2015 to 16.2 million by 2035.” And what are some of the projects these older folks are going to need? Added or task lighting, curb-less showers, grab bars, non-slip floors, and widened doorways are just a few of the more popular projects for Americans planning to age in place.
Does Home Building Industry’s Future Require Shades?
Riding the Uptrend in Housing Construction via abcNEWS
After bottoming out in 2013-14, the housing market “started picking up markedly in late 2015/early 2016…[and] the slack in the market has since played out.” Good news all around for the housing industry folks.
Better Make Those Shades Ray-Bans!
Private Residential Construction Spending at Post-Recession High via Builder
“Are We Out of the Woods?” ~Taylor Swift. I don’t think Ms. Swift’s song is about whether the residential construction industry is bouncing back from the lows of the recession, but the sentiment expressed in her song certainly applies. Seems like we are indeed out of the woods, out in the open, in the bright sunshine, and hopefully wearing shades…
Worried About the Rising Cost of College Tuition?
Send Your Kid to Build Houses in Michigan!
Not Ready for College? Michigan’s Construction Industry Touts Building Trades via MLive
We’ve been hearing about the labor shortage affecting the construction industry for quite a while now. And any parent of school-age children can tell you horror stories about the rising cost of a college education. The state of Michigan seems to have come up with an ingenious idea to solve both problems: let kids opt out of college for skilled trades apprentice training instead! Hail to the (Apprentices) Victors!
Canadian Wood (This Tariff Has Flown)
Builders May Not Feel Impact of Canadian Softwood Lumber Tariffs for 6 Months via ConstructionDive
The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) calls the new, preliminary tariffs, “short-sighted,” claiming that it could eliminate 8,000 full-time construction jobs. I wonder how the domestic lumber industry feels about it? Regardless, this bird has flown as they say, though this article says that builders shouldn’t expect to see the upward impact on lumber prices for another 6 months or so. On a related note, what is a “softwood” anyway?
Payment, Credit, and Lien Rights
More construction industry content, but more about specific issues around
payment, credit, and lien law updates
Because a “Lien Deadline Slide Rule” Is Just Silly
Calculate Project Deadlines with Ease: Introducing the Lien Deadline Calculator via the zlien Blog
We’re very proud of our newly released Lien Deadline Calculator, a free tool that gives anyone the power to calculate lien and notice deadlines and requirements on any project nationwide. Click the picture below and give it a try for yourself!
Fair Pay Has Gone Away?
The Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces [Executive] Order is Dead via the zlien Lien Law Alerts Blog
From a strictly payments perspective, the “Paycheck Transparency” provisions seemed to make a lot of sense to us. Unfortunately, the entirety of the Obama-penned executive order proved to be unpalatable to many different constituencies, and the rule was officially nullified by the Trump Administration.
Construction Tech
zlien is a technology company after all!
News and other tidbits about the fast-growing construction technology space
Just How Fabulous is PreFab?
Multifamily PreFab Company Prescient Raises $40M via ConstructionDive
So, should a prefabrication company be considered as a construction company? Manufacturing? Tech? All three? That seems to be the case with this Arvada, CO-based firm, which has raised a total of $80M since launching in 2012. Prescient already employs 300 people and is about to add 75 more. Impressive trajectory for a company that’s about to turn 5 years old.
Do They Sell 3-D Printer Cartridges at Office Depot?
How to Print a House via Curbed
The revolution is here, and while it may not be televised, it sure looks like it might be printed. 3-D printed, that is. “Everybody’s dream is you hit a button and boom, your house pops out.”
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