Table of Contents February 2009

Products

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  Less is More

  A new generation of faucets makes water conservation as easy as pie.

   
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  Tighten Up

  How good is the insulation in your homes?

   

Inside Story

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  Desperate Times, Innovative Measures

  Two bankrupt builders hook up to market unsold and new homes.

   
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  Looking Ahead

  Stockton, Calif., is still approving projects to accommodate its population growth.

   

Success Stories

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  Chick Pick

  Homes designed for women hit their mark.

   
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  Just Right

  Downsizing boomers make a move for homes that are smaller, greener, and more accessible.

   

Top Shelf

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  Zip Sponge Holder

   
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  Strand Bamboo Flooring

   
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  Multi-Use Construction Knife

   
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  Landscape Light

   
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  No VOC Paint

   
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  LED chandelier

   
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  New Pocket-Screw System

   
• 

  Construction Gloves

   

Green House

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  Look for the Label

  Architect Michelle Kaufmann calls for a universal sustainability labeling standard for new homes.

   
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  Volunteer Effort

  Akamai Construction's Franklin, Tenn., community seeks NAHB National Green Building Certification.

   

• Signs of Change

  Do homeownership credits for solar energy signal the start of green mortgage lending?

   

Sales Strategies

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  Dress for Less

  Four top designers share their strategies for keeping the pizzazz for less cash.

   

• Tools for 2009

  Popular new-home sales university also presented as a series of free YouTube videos

   

• Hangin’ with Hailey

  An innovative and cost-effective marketing campaign increases traffic and sales for Hubbell Homes.

   

Digital Home

• Scaling Back Smartly

  Integrated home automation systems can maximize space efficiency and make a small home feel larger.

   

• Smart Meters

  Utility companies will be able to interact with home control systems through smart meters.

   

Features

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  Bargain Basements

  New building code standard, ACI 332, offers builders a better alternative for building concrete basement foundations.

   
• 

  Little Gems

  How much house is just enough? We looked at three custom homes whose owners probably could have asked for more, but decided that smaller was better.

   
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  Financially Troubled Builders Weigh Their Options

  Distressed companies are trying to figure out the pros and cons of declaring bankruptcy.

   

National Beat

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  No Stone Unturned

  The NAHB is working tirelessly to bring home building's issues to the forefront of the national discussion.

   

• Win While You Work

  Winners of the 2009 EnergyValue Housing Award take the spotlight.

   

Last Word

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  Last Word: Nicolas Retsinas

  BUILDER talks to the director of the Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies

   

Other Articles

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  Less Is Less

  More government action is needed to keep the housing market from negatively overcorrecting.

   

• Second Acts

  If history has taught us one lesson, it’s that endings can mark a new beginning.