by Miranda G. McLeod
Staff Writer
Besides combating media reports of “doom and gloom” in the current market, the Northeast Florida Builders Association also worked to get voters active last month prior to this month’s election. NEFBA was for Amendment 3, which began as a legislative join resolution that requires a 60 percent vote by both the Florida House of Representatives and the Florida Senate to be eligible for the ballot.
NEFBA was against bringing the Navy back to Cecil Field and encouraged members to vote accordingly during the Nov. 7 election.
Other notes from the meeting:
• Next year’s FHBA fall conference is at the Ritz-Carlton on Amelia Island and NEFBA President Jerry Linder encouraged all members to show the state association what Northeast Florida has to offer.
• Ken Keuster won tickets to the Georgia-Florida football game that was Oct. 28. Keuster recruited new members for NEFBA to win the tickets.
• The NEFBA Holiday Golf Tournament is Dec. 1 at the Golf Club at Osprey Cove. It starts at 11 a.m. with lunch and a shotgun start at noon. Cost is $150 per player.
• Builder’s Care is working with the USO to expand an area at Jacksonville International Airport from 300 to 800 square feet. Haskell designed the layout for the facility that is the “last touch of home,” according to K. C. McCarthy, executive director of the Jacksonville USO. “The facility enhances the quality of life for military men and women.”
DFid You Know?
• Forty-three percent of sellers chose agents based on a referral by a friend, neighbor or relative, and 28 percent used their agent previously; 10 other categories were 5 percent or less. Fifty-seven percent of sellers said reputation was the most important factor in selecting an agent, followed by their knowledge of the neighborhood, 17 percent. Eight-two percent said they were likely to use the same agent again or recommend to others.
(2005 National Association of Realtors Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers)
• The National Association of Home Builder’s International Builders show early registration lasts until Nov. 17 For information and to register, go to www.buildershow.com. The show is Feb. 7-10 at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando.
• NEFBA is hosting a seminar Dec. 5 for builders, associate members, Realtors and anyone connected with the construction industry. It will include statistics, forecasts and strategies for success in a changing market from local industry experts Prudential Netowork Realty’s Linda Sherrer; MetroStudy’s Charlie Clark; Mark Vitner of Wachovia; and Clockwork Marketing’s Maxine McBride. The seminar will be at the Marriott Southpoint. Continental breakfast will be served at 8 a.m., and the seminar will begin at 8:30. Cost is $50 for NEFBA members, $65 for non-members. Contact Jamie Atkins at 725-4355 for more detail and to register.
• NEFBA introduced a new Masonry Council at its October board meeting. The new Masonry Council consists of (pictured above from left to right) Johnny Woodle of Rink Material; Al Herndon; chairman Dan Holt; and vice chairman Robert Carlton. Northeast Florida has the lowest
percentage of masonry, as compared to wood building, according to Holt. “We want to bridge the gap between the manual laborer and the builder,” he said. “Labor was the issue in the past. With our apprenticeship program, we may be able to improve the labor force. Availability of material was also an issue. But all that has been rectified with the commitment from concrete block industry increasing volume availability in construction.”