With Fewer Buyers, Home Builders Get Higher Marks On Quality
15 Septembre 2009 - 8:16PM
Dow Jones News
Here's an unexpected benefit of the housing downturn: The
quality of new homes appears to be improving.
Customer satisfaction climbed for the second consecutive year,
hitting a record average of 811 on a 1,000-point scale, according
to the J.D. Power and Associates 2009 U.S. New-Home Builder
Customer Satisfaction Study released Tuesday. It climbed 32 points
from last year's 779, a figure that includes workmanship,
materials, warranty and price.
With less work to do, it is not surprising that builders'
product is improving. Sales levels and prices have plunged, and
customers are no doubt thrilled with the bargain-priced inventory
that's out there.
Plus, in the past, a buyer would wait and wait for the builder
to deliver their new home. Now many new homes purchased are already
finished, so there's no buyer rushing the builder along. The
percentage of homes delivered complete and on time came in at 76%,
up from 2008's 70%.
The battered home builders who survived the bust are even
touting the survey's results with press releases.
Back in the boom, builders rushed to meet what seemed to be
insatiable demand - more than 2 million homes sprung up in 2005
alone. But with not enough skilled construction workers and quality
materials to go around, complaints and lawsuits regarding defective
construction flourished. Home owners say they have dealt with
issues including mold, cracking floors, separating gutters and
jammed windows and doors.
Hurting for raw materials, the busy builders imported drywall
from China. That's come back to haunt them, too. Complaints about
defective drywall are mounting. That tally is near 1,200, from 24
states, stretching from California to New York, along with
Washington, D.C.
According to the survey, this year's chief concerns include
landscaping, heating and air conditioning and cabinets.
Public builder Pulte Homes Inc. (PHM), which recently acquired
Centex to become an industry giant, led the way for quality in
Tampa, San Antonio and Philadelphia. The company hopes quality will
help build its brand as the market improves. Competitor Lennar
Corp. (LEN) dominated quality in Tucson, while Standard Pacific
Corp. (SPF) topped in Austin. KB Home (KBH) led the way in
Phoenix.
The 13-year-old survey is based on responses from 26,231 buyers
of new single-family homes who provided feedback after an average
of four-to-18 months, long enough for most problems to emerge. It
was conducted between March and July. Problem rates have declined
in 23 markets that were included in last year's study.
- Dawn Wotapka; Dow Jones Newswires; 212-416-2193;
dawn.wotapka@dowjones.com