New Requirements for S.C. Certified Master Builder candidates announced

The Certified Master Builders of South Carolina Committee of the Home Builders Association of South Carolina recently approved changes to the requirements for becoming a Certified Master Builder (CMB). The new requirements, which go into effect on January 1, 2012, will ensure that all CMB candidates are taking classes according to an official curriculum, and will improve the integrity of the program.

“We’ve been working with the Education Committee to develop a curriculum that ensures all candidates enter the program with the same education background,” said James G. Graves, CMB Committee chairman.

The new curriculum is divided between core classes and elective classes, with the required number of education hours remaining at twenty. The following is a breakdown of the new requirements:

Core Classes

• NAHB Business Management for Building Professionals (8 CEUs) – If this class is exempted based on the BAR/PREP results, the candidate must show proof.
• Building Codes (4 CEUs)

Elective Classes

• Business Management Field (4 CEUs) – These classes must be pre-approved by the Education Committee.
• Technical Field (4 CEUs) – Classes must come from one or all of the following topics: Safety, Estimating, Project Management, and/or Insurance & Risk Management.

The original requirements were 20 CEUs, with 12 units in the business management field and eight in the technical field. With the old system, candidates could take any class, as long as it was an approved class and fell into one of the two categories.

“Our goal is to protect the integrity and the reputation of the Master Builder program and that’s what we’re doing by making these changes to the candidate requirements,” said Graves, “and I expect there to be changes in the future as the program grows.”

For those home builders association builder members who are currently seeking to become a CMB, any application packet received by the HBASC office after December 31, 2011 that does not meet the new requirements will be denied.

Certified Master Builder of South Carolina is an education-based designation program created by builder members at the Home Builders Association of South Carolina to help home buyers and home owners find builders and remodelers they can trust. Certified Master Builders must meet strict requirements that prove they have an excellent track record of stability, integrity and service to their buyers. For information on the CMB program, visit www.masterbuildersc.org.

Governor Haley proposes requiring unemployed to enroll in job training

In a nod to employers, Governor Nikki Haley announced in Greenville today that she will propose to the legislature that applicants for unemployment benefits must first enroll in job training before they will be eligible to apply for unemployment benefits.

“We went to Bosch’s Anderson plant today and they had a great trained workforce,” Haley said. “But the Charleston plant is suffering terribly because they can’t find workers. We have to make sure every region is covered.”

South Carolina’s No. 1 goal is to train its workforce and a program aiming to do that will be announced in the coming months, Haley said to a large group of business leaders who met at the TD Convention Center today.

Read the entire article at GSA Business by clicking here.

Distressed home sales fall across the state

The number of homes classified as "distressed" that were sold in the state during the second quarter of 2011 dropped by more than 17 percent compared to the same quarter in 2010.

RealtyTrac defines "distressed" as homes that are in foreclosure, but the foreclosure proceeding has not yet been completed. Distressed properties generally sell for less than the prevailing market.

In Greenville, the number of distressed sales totaled 416, a decrease of 5 percent. Distressed sales totaled 22 percent of all sales. The average discount compared to the prevailing market was 33 percent. In Spartanburg, the number of distress sales totaled 148, a decrease of 1 percent. Distressed sales totaled 21 percent of all sales. The average discount was 28 percent. In Anderson, the number of distressed sales totaled 88, an increase of 13 percent. Distressed sales totaled 16 percent of all sales. The average discount was 33 percent.

Read the entire report at GSA Business by clicking here.

Housing affordability hovers at near record levels

Nationwide housing affordability is hovering near record levels, according to the latest NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Opportunity Index (HOI) data released this week. The HOI indicated that 72.6 percent of all new and existing homes sold in the second quarter of the year were affordable to families earning the national median income of $64,200. The affordability measure dipped slightly from the all-time high of 74.6 percent set last quarter but remained above the 70 percent threshold initially achieved in the first quarter of 2009.

The Greenville metropolitan area affordability index was 79.3 during the second quarter, up from 77.9 in the first quarter. The high for the area was 85.9 in the first quarter of 2004.

Youngstown, Ohio was the most affordable major housing market during the second quarter. In Youngstown, 93.7 percent of all homes sold were affordable to households earning the area’s median family income. Also ranking near the top of the most affordable major markets were Syracuse, N.Y.; Indianapolis, Ind.; Dayton, Ohio; and Lakeland-Winter Haven, Fla.

New York-White Plains-Wayne, N.Y.-N.J., led the nation as the least affordable major housing market during the second quarter of 2011. In New York, 25.2 percent of all homes sold during the quarter were affordable to those earning the area’s median income of $67,400. This marks the 13th consecutive quarter that the New York metropolitan division has held this position.

Other major metro areas near the bottom of the affordability index included San Francisco-San Mateo-Redwood City, Calif.; Santa Ana-Anaheim-Irvine, Calif.; Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale, Calif.; and Honolulu, respectively.

Clemson ranks sixth in return on investment for graduates

Clemson University was ranked sixth by SmartMoney Magazine in a study of return on investment for graduates. The study evaluated the cost of attending the school and the return on investment after graduation.

Click here to read the report at GSA Business.

Brookings: It is official; more nonwhites are being born than whites in America

The most recent 2010 Census data to be released confirms what has been implied for some time: virtually half of all recent births in the U.S. are "minorities." This is a fundamental change in the U.S. population that is expected to ultimately redefine which groups are defined as "minority" in America.

Read the full report at The Brookings Institution by clicking here.

Congressman Trey Gowdy Will Speak at HBA Government Affairs Forum August 31

UPDATE: The Government Affairs Forum featuring Congressman Trey Gowdy has been postponed until August 31, 8:30 a.m., at the Greater Greenville Association of Realtors.

Congressman Gowdy has been called back to Washington by Speaker of the House John Boehner so that Congress can work on the raising of the Federal debt limit.

What: HBA of Greenville Government Affairs Forum
Speaker: Congressman Trey Gowdy
When: Wednesday, August 31, 8:30 a.m.
Where: Greater Greenville Association of Realtors Office, 50 Airpark Court, Greenville

HBA of Greenville Legislative Committee Chairman Rick Quinn announced that Trey Gowdy, Republican Congressman from the Fourth Congressional District, will speak at the next HBA Government Affairs Forum.

The forum will be held jointly with the Government Affairs Committee of the Greater Greenville Association of Realtors, chaired by Bill Kane of Ryan Homes.

The Government Affairs Forum is where association leaders and members can hear first hand from government officials. Recent appearances have included the administrators of Greenville County and the City of Greenville, as well as a member of the S.C. House of Representatives.

Reservations are not required, but are encouraged. To register, click here. Continental breakfast will be served.