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Luxury home market poised for quick rebound
Michael J. Berens Construction & Building MaterialsAs with other sectors of the housing market, sales of luxury homes in the U.S. plunged in late March and April as most of the country came under stay-at-home orders. Domestic clientele decided to hold back, and with many other affluent countries facing similar restrictions, including bans on air travel, the pool of international buyers and investors soon evaporated. Sellers quickly began to pull their properties off the market, further reducing opportunities for sales. In recent weeks activity has begun to revive, however, and industry insiders anticipate that sales will start to rebound by early summer.
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Infographic: Robots in the construction industry
Christian Castillo Construction & Building MaterialsThe robots are coming, but instead of taking over our jobs, they're more likely to help us become much more productive. The construction industry is a prime example of this; since construction is one of the most dangerous industries to work in, automating many of the jobs can make the work environment much safer. In fact, it's already started, ranging from drones improving safety on a worksite to a humanoid robot from NASA, the Valkyrie, made to withstand the harsh vacuum of space and help us travel the stars.
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The new normal may be anything but
Linda Popky Business Management, Services & Risk ManagementMaybe we've hit bottom. Three months into the COVID-19 lockdown, it appears that mitigation measures have "flattened the curve." Measures are being taken to reopen the economy on some level in just about every state in America. How far and how fast this will proceed remains to be seen. A common refrain is that we are trying to "get back to normal." There’s only one problem. Those days are gone — if not forever, for a very, very long time.
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Health concerns are reshaping the housing landscape
Michael J. Berens Construction & Building MaterialsAs expected, home sales plummeted in April, the first full month during which much of the nation was under orders to remain indoors. Nonetheless, in some parts of the country buyer demand continued to outstrip supply, and prices increased due to inventory shortages. Without question, the health crisis created by the COVID-19 pandemic and its consequences for social interaction are having a significant impact on real estate markets and communities.
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How COVID-19 might affect the commercial real estate market
Terri Williams Business Management, Services & Risk ManagementCOVID-19 has negatively impacted every industry, including the commercial real estate sector. Whether or not this industry can bounce back — and to what extent — is dependent on several factors. "COVID-19 will usher in a form of real estate Darwinism where only the financially strong will be able to survive," warns Michael Gevurtz, CEO of Bluebird Lending in Philadelphia.
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Public restrooms are reopening but may cause more challenges than can be…
Scott E. Rupp Facilities & GroundsAs the world awakens from its COVID-19-forced economic slumber, one vital and essential service offering remains largely at large. Across the U.S., from California and Iowa to Florida, there is a confusing topic of conversation: To open restrooms, leave them closed, and how to clean them among the clatter of how best to reopen businesses across the country. The chaos of the typical American public restroom could change forever, Fast Company reports.
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VR goes to work in interior design
Michael J. Berens Interior Design, Furnishings & FixturesConfronted with the need to maintain social distancing and minimize direct contact with clients, many design firms have turned to visualization tools such as augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) during the past few months as means of increasing engagement with clients and facilitating virtual design planning and decision-making. This is likely to be merely the first step towards tapping the considerable potential these of technologies.
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As occupancies reached all-time lows, hotel construction hit an all-time…
Lark Gould Travel, Hospitality & Event ManagementThe U.S. hotel industry recorded 214,704 rooms under construction in March 2020, the highest end-of-month total ever reported by lodging research firm STR. The industry's previous construction peak happened in December 2007 with 211,694 hotel rooms in construction. That level was then slightly surpassed in February 2020 at 211,859 rooms in the final phase of the development pipeline. The news comes in the midst of hotel industry's ongoing COVID-19 nightmare.
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Early indicators signal mixed recovery for remodelers
Michael J. Berens Construction & Building MaterialsWhen the economy begins to regain momentum, will demand for remodeling services bounce back? Or, will homeowners proceed more cautiously for some months, waiting to see if conditions improve and the housing market stabilizes? Industry analysts in recent weeks have proposed both scenarios. At present, a third scenario seems more likely, that some homeowners will want to move ahead with projects right away, while others will choose to wait.
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Report: Most contractors accept slow payments, don’t take action…
Justin Gitelman Construction & Building MaterialsIn the recently released 2020 National Construction Payment Report, contractors reveal that they spend a significant amount of time and energy trying to get paid, but they’re largely unwilling to take steps to speed up payment. As a result of slow and incomplete payments, construction businesses suffer jobsite delays and experience stunted growth. The report is based on a survey conducted by Levelset and Fieldwire in Q1 2020. In the survey, over 540 construction businesses gave insight into the relationship between their coordination on the jobsite and payment practices in the back office.
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