Behold, the ultimate safe houses

The devastation that super storm Sandy brought to the East Coast has stepped up disaster preparation efforts from all sectors, including homebuilding. In fact, even before Sandy barreled its way to residential areas in the East Coast, some owners were fortifying their homes against possible calamities, from hurricanes to nuclear attack, reports The Wall Street Journal. These homeowners are testing materials and technology that could change how home building is being done by the likes of Jeff Rutt.

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An example of this, as shown in the article mentioned, is the Hollywood Hills home of the Corbi family. The house may look like any modern home in the area, but it has been built to withstand nearly every type of disaster imaginable, from storms to high-magnitude earthquakes and wildfires. The wine cellar in the basement doubles as an underground bunker, while the rooftop helipad allows for a last-ditch emergency exit if all security measures fail.

Then there’s also the “hurricane-resistant home” in South Florida, which is outfitted with 12-inch thick reinforced concrete walls covered by a rubberized material for added waterproofing and clad in 2-inch stone.

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Meanwhile, a 70,000-square-foot chateau-style home in Christian County, Missouri, is being touted as the ultimate tornado-proof home. It has 12-inch thick walls and ballistic-proof windows that have been tested to resist the equivalent of a two-by-four board traveling at 40 miles an hour, which is roughly the speed at which debris can be hurtled during a big storm.

Indeed, some homeowners are splurging on materials and technologies to make their homes ready for any disaster. After all, a house is a great deal of investment, and for some homeowners, such investment should be safeguarded at all times.

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Visit this website to know more about the latest in homebuilding in Central Pennsylvania.

In the Rockies, a Resort—and Refuge

Sharing an article about real estate developments in the Rockies, written by Alyssa Abkowitz for the The Wall Street Journal:


In the resort town of Vail, Colo., real-estate professionals are stepping up efforts to court an increasingly important group of luxury ski-home shoppers: wealthy buyers from Mexico.

Slifer Smith & Frampton, a brokerage based in Avon, Colo., recently unveiled a Latin American division and now makes several trips to Mexico City to host dinners and cocktail parties for potential homeowners. On a jaunt in late October, the firm co-sponsored a dinner at the home of a well-known Mexican television executive for 60 guests, who ate ceviche and sipped Champagne. "Several of the attendees are already looking," says Beatriz Martinez, the head of the new division. And this winter, the firm is printing its first buying guide in Spanish and working with local banks and title companies with personnel who speak Spanish.

The firm has also partnered with Glika International, a boutique real-estate firm in Mexico City, and Ski Madness, a real-estate and ski company, offering them 50% of the commission—much larger than a typical referral fee—for sending high-net-worth Mexicans interested in Vail to their agency. In turn, Glika and Ski Madness help sponsor various local events, such as a VIP dinner Ski Madness co-sponsored in late October. Currently, Slifer Smith & Frampton says it has 50% market share in Vail, a market where prices are still down 30% from their peak in 2008.

While Vail has long been popular among wealthy Mexican families, a recent real-estate spree has been fueled, in some cases, by a desire for security. "Safety is a huge issue for many of these families," says Julie Bergsten, vice president of Slifer Smith & Frampton. "We've even seen some families move here full-time."

PLANTING NEW ROOTS | Alejandro Marti, the CEO of a Mexican sporting-goods store, bought the bankrupt Vail Plaza hotel and remodeled it into the Sebastian, an upscale, hotel-condo development.



Mexican buyers have been behind a number of big-ticket sales in Vail this year. At the Four Seasons Residences, a three-bedroom, three-bathroom home sold for $4.2 million over the summer to a business executive from Mexico City. In the spring, a Mexican buyer bought a $7.5 million home on Gore Creek Place, a desirable street overlooking Vail Mountain. And two out of the last three sales at the Solaris, one of the newest developments in Vail Village, sold to Mexican families this year with price tags around $6 million each.

FirstBank, a regional bank, has made loans to more than a dozen Mexican buyers in the past year, up from only "two or three a year" five years ago, says James Wilkins, senior vice president. "They've been a strength in the last couple of years, when there was a dearth of high-end buyers."

Mexico's economy has weathered the global financial turmoil, but well-financed drug cartels continue to place growing pressure on the country to deal with rising violence. Earlier this year, the Mexican government released data that showed crime-related deaths increased 11% in the first nine months of 2011 compared with the same period in 2010. That has spurred Mexican business people with families to spend more time outside of Mexico, real-estate agents say.

Alejandro Marti, the CEO of a Mexican sporting-goods store, moved his family to Vail permanently after a crime-related family tragedy. In 2009, Mr. Marti bought the bankrupt Vail Plaza hotel and remodeled it into the Sebastian, an upscale hotel-condo development aimed at providing a hub for Mexican culture and art. "Everything in Vail is European-oriented," Mr. Marti says. The Sebastian opened at the end of 2011, and in the past year, three families from Mexico each purchased eight-week memberships, or fractionals, for $580,000 a pop; one family purchased multiple weeks at the Sebastian for a total of $1.1 million.

Alex Martinez, a lawyer from Mexico City, purchased a $390,000 fractional ownership at the Sebastian that allows him to use the property for four weeks a year. He bought earlier this year after hearing that Mr. Marti owned the development. "He's a very well-known businessman, and whatever he does he puts his heart into it," Mr. Martinez says. In all, about 40% of the Sebastian's condo buyers are from Mexico.

At the Solaris, a trendy upscale residential complex in Vail Village, Latin Americans have bought 60% of the units that have sold for more than $12 million, with Mexicans making up the majority of those buyers.

"If a certain group selects a place, it's likely others will follow," says Johannes Faessler, a longtime Vail resident and proprietor of the Sonnenalp, a European-style hotel in town.

Part of the lure is Vail's focus on family-oriented activities. For example, the Solaris has a 70,000-square-foot complex with a bowling alley, a movie theater, an ice-skating rink and a shopping center. During peak vacation weeks, retailers in Vail will set up extra playrooms for the barrage of children and nannies or add kid-friendly food to menus.

The biggest concern that can trip up real-estate deals for many Mexican buyers is security. Many of the buyers in Vail are so private that it has been difficult to process loans, since the buyers are reluctant to turn over tax returns or financial statements. Mr. Wilkins, the FirstBank executive, notes that acquiring private loans along family lines is still prevalent in Mexico.

"Sometimes it comes down to, 'If you want this property, we need a complete financial picture,' " he says.

The Mexican real-estate rush has also started a new campaign to bring a direct flight from Mexico City to Eagle County airport, which is about 30 miles away from Vail compared with Denver's 120-mile trek. Says Kent Myers, an airline consultant who's leading the effort to woo Eagle County officials to expand its air service: "That could really move the dial."

Jeff Rutt: Making a difference in people's lives through CSR projects that make sense

Jeff Rutt, the founder of HOPE International, maintains that companies should take time to fully develop their plans if they hope to make a difference in the lives of their targeted beneficiaries through a corporate social responsibility initiative.

Jeff Rutt Image Credit: hopeinternational.org

Without a doubt, many business owners start off with good intentions when they decide to take on a CSR project that is in line with their company goals. They may have ideas on the outcomes they want and how to best achieve their aim of providing relief for the recipients. However, haphazardly going about this matter and misunderstanding the needs of the beneficiary may actually end up doing more harm than good.

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Jeff Rutt notes that lasting change needs continuous and timely effort. There’s an appropriate response for varying needs, and companies with CSR projects cannot stick with just one approach if they plan on making a difference to the community they’re setting out to help. Providing for the immediate needs of the people is necessary in times of emergencies. After that, however, going for long term development goals is the next best course of action to take.

Likewise, making the project mean more to the company’s stakeholders is also important to its long term existence and success. Companies should aim for a worthy cause and utilize a methodology that allows the participants to make use of their skills and passions to make a difference in a natural way.

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Additional information about Jeff Rutt and Homes for Hope can be found at www.homes4hope.org.

Jeff Rutt shares good news on the housing market

Hi everyone, this is Jeff Rutt with some good news on the housing market. This week home sales continued to increase signaling that the housing recovery is in full swing. The apparent recovery in the housing market has not only been good news for builders and homebuyers looking to find great deals, it has also had a positive impact on other parts of the economy as well. Building supplies retailers such as Home Depot and Lowes reported increased sales. Likewise, more consumers are finding that their home values are beginning to increase once again allowing them to reclaim some of their lost equity. Let’s hope that these rebounds in the housing industry continue to have a positive impact on the economy into the fall!

Many Blessings,

Jeff Rutt


Housing market recovery helping bolster U.S. expansion

Sept. 19 (Bloomberg) -- Sales of previously owned homes and work on single-family projects climbed in August to the highest levels in two years, signaling the residential real-estate market is contributing to the U.S. economic recovery.

Purchases of existing houses increased 7.8 percent to a 4.82 million annual rate, the most since May 2010, figures from the National Association of Realtors showed today in Washington. The median forecast of 78 economists surveyed by Bloomberg called for sales to increase to a 4.56 million pace. Commerce Department data showed builders began work on the most one- family homes since April 2010.

The U.S. economy shows signs of finally bottoming out as Americans are ready to take a chance with college or the job market.

A new report has found the U.S. government may have paid hundreds of millions of dollars in mortgage aid to struggling homeowners who did not qualify for that help. Record-low mortgage rates, more affordable properties and limited supply of new homes are driving orders at builders such as Toll Brothers Inc. and Hovnanian Enterprises Inc. In addition, sales of distressed properties are starting to account for a smaller share of the market, leading to gains in home values that are laying the groundwork for a sustained economic expansion as household sentiment and finances improve.

“The nascent housing recovery has deepened,” said Ellen Zentner, a senior U.S. economist at Nomura Securities International Inc. in New York, who projected existing-home sales would climb to a 4.85 million rate. “Ultimately, this improvement will lead to a rise in residential wealth, which tends to lift consumer confidence and spending.”



The Standard & Poor’s Supercomposite Homebuilders Index rose 3.8 percent at 12:56 p.m. in New York, while the S&P 500 gained 0.3 percent. The pickup in housing helps explain why the index of builder shares, including PulteGroup Inc. and D.R. Horton Inc., has surged 77 percent this year through yesterday, outpacing a 16 percent gain in the broader S&P 500.



Builder Shares



Construction of single-family houses climbed 5.5 percent to a 535,000 rate, the fastest since April 2010, after a 4.5 percent decrease, the Commerce Department said today in Washington. Permits for the building of one-family homes increased 0.2 percent to a 512,000 annual pace, the highest since March 2010.

Beginning construction of all homes rose 2.3 percent to a 750,000 annual rate in August, less than forecast and restrained by a decrease in starts of multifamily dwellings that are volatile month to month.

Work on apartments and other multifamily homes dropped 4.9 percent to an annual rate of 215,000.



Beyond Builders


The housing rebound extends beyond builders -- from home- furnishings retailers like Lowe’s Cos. and Home Depot Inc. to building materials supplies such as gypsum wallboard-maker USG Corp.

Existing-home sales have improved after reaching a low of a 3.39 million annual rate in July 2010. In the buildup to the subprime lending collapse and recession, purchases reached a peak of 7.25 million in September 2005.

Estimates in the Bloomberg survey for August ranged from 4.45 million to 4.85 million. Compared with a year earlier, purchases increased 11 percent in August, today’s report showed.

The median price of an existing home climbed 9.5 percent to $187,400 from $171,200 in August 2011. Prices have increased in each of the past six months on a year-to-year basis, the best performance since early 2006.

The increase in prices reflects both a reduction in distressed sales and a “genuine” appreciation in property values, Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said in a news conference today as the figures were released.

A published report says Bank of America is accelerating its cost-cutting plan. A new report has found the U.S. government may have paid hundreds of millions of dollars in mortgage aid to struggling homeowners who did not qualify for that help.

The gain in home values may induce potential buyers and sellers to enter the market. Prices last quarter posted their first year-over-year gain since 2007, according to Zillow Inc., the Seattle-based operator of the largest real-estate information website.

Higher real estate values also helped more than 1.3 million homeowners regain equity in the first six months of 2012, according to CoreLogic. About 22.3 percent of homeowners with a mortgage owed more than their homes were worth at the end of June, down from 23.7 percent three months earlier.

Even with pricier real estate, homes remain affordable. The average rate on a 30-year fixed mortgage was at 3.55 percent in the week ended Sept. 13, near 3.49 percent, the lowest since records began in 1971, Freddie Mac data show.

The Federal Reserve has also committed to purchasing $40 billion of mortgage debt a month to lower borrowing costs, helping the housing market that Chairman Ben S. Bernanke called “one of the missing pistons in the engine.”



Fed’s Bernanke


“Our mortgage-backed securities purchases ought to drive down mortgage rates and put downward pressure on mortgage rates and create more demand for homes and more refinancing,” Bernanke said in a Sept. 13 press conference after the central bank announced the debt-buying plans.

Homebuilders such as Red Bank, New Jersey-based Hovnanian Enterprises Inc. and Toll Brothers are seeing increased demand.

“Due to the industry’s rebound and our increase in sales pace, our communities are selling out more quickly and literally caught us without being able to replenish as fast as we’d like,” Ara K. Hovnanian, the company’s chairman, president and chief executive officer, said on a Sept. 6 earnings call.

Toll Brothers, the largest U.S. luxury-home builder, reported a better-than-estimated profit and an increase in revenue for its third quarter ended July 31. The average price of the homes that the Horsham, Pennsylvania-based company delivered in the quarter climbed to $576,000 from $557,000 in the previous three months.

“The housing recovery is being driven by pent-up demand, very low interest rates and attractively priced homes,” Chief Executive Officer Douglas Yearley Jr. said on an Aug. 22 conference call with investors. “With an industry wide shortage of inventory in many markets, we are enjoying some pricing power.”



Posted on http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/housing-market-recovery-helping-bolster-us-expansion-economy/2012/09/19/00dbb1be-027d-11e2-9132-f2750cd65f97_story_1.html.



Stay tuned for more articles and comments-Jeff Rutt

Jeff Rutt: Material quality and the integrity of your home

Much like how a delectable dish is made of the right ingredients, a house must be built with the right materials. For leading homebuilders like Jeff Rutt, quality can spell the difference between a home that would last a lifetime and a shoddily built shack that might as well topple over.

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Building a quality home might appear to be expensive at first, but this would ultimately be a sound investment in part for the homebuilder and, eventually, the homeowner. Quality building materials and fixtures, when combined with sound building techniques and proper planning, help create a structure that would be less difficult to maintain, saving the homeowner time and money in the long run.

One does not become a leading nationwide homebuilder without investing in quality products and services. Jeff Rutt of Keystone Custom Homes ensures that the companies he keeps are known for high standards of quality.

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Cutting corners in quality might appear to save money, but its resulting cost may prove to be much more expensive in the long run. Materials may decay quickly, threatening the integrity of the structure, or contain toxic substances that may threaten the health of the home’s inhabitants. Moreover, mounting repair costs may end up being more expensive than the house itself.

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The building materials for one’s home are an investment that would pay for itself in the long run. Choosing quality in this stage can make all the difference.

More information on Jeff Rutt and his company can be accessed on this website.

Inside job: Jeff Rutt warns homeowners about their drywalls

Jeff Rutt is the founder of Keystone Custom Homes, a leading independent home builder in Pennsylvania.

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A drywall is a wallboard made of gypsum plaster pressed between two thick sheets of paper, normally installed on interior walls and ceilings. Drywalls were extensively used during the construction boom that followed the hurricane disasters in Florida in 2004 and 2005. Most of them were imported and were installed in large scale. However, serious problems regarding their use emerged soon. Just months after they were installed, sulfur fumes escaped in the air and copper wires and pipes attached to them were damaged.

“For many people, a home is the single largest purchase they will make in their lifetimes. Making the wrong choice can have negative consequences for years to come.” — Jeff Rutt.

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While drywalls make a good alternative to the traditional lath and plaster, not all come in brands that deliver the quality homeowners need. In addition to producing fume and wiring issues, drywalls can also support the growth of mold due to their porous and lightweight substance. Hence, greedboard and cement board are often installed in areas that have high humidity, such as kitchens, bathrooms, and laundry rooms.

Choosing high-quality drywall is important to avoid hazards and expensive rehabilitation. The Consumer Product Safety Commission and U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s remediation guidance is a helpful resource that provides an effective approach to address potential health and safety issues for the remediation of houses affected by problem drywall.

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For more information about Jeff Rutt and the services offered by Keystone Custom Homes, log on to www.keystonecustomhome.com.

Jeff Rutt: Empowering women through microfinance

In 1997, Jeff Rutt established HOPE International, a Christian faith-based nonprofit organization committed to alleviating physical and spiritual poverty through microenterprise development.

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It is not by chance that the majority of HOPE’s microfinance clients are women. It seems that even from the beginning of microfinance, its beneficiaries are mostly women. This just shows that the opportunities are still scarce for women to succeed in business today.

In many countries where HOPE works, women belong to the marginalized section of the society, deprived of education and prohibited to work outside their homes. Through its outreach programs, HOPE observed that when given the opportunity to start their own business, women are highly motivated to work hard to make their enterprises succeed.

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Jeff Rutt’s HOPE International also notes that women are prudent borrowers. Not only do they repay more consistently than their male counterparts, but women are also more likely to use their business profits to support their families. When a microfinance institution empowers a woman to improve her income, the resulting profits are typically used to provide better nutrition, to improve housing, or to support children’s education.

Jeff Rutt and HOPE International believe that women have a unique opportunity to make their mark in the fight against poverty.

There are also instances when microfinance results in non-financial benefits. HOPE cites the story of one of its savings groups in India, and how the group was able to save one of its members from an abusive relationship. The member shared that her husband consistently beat her. Though she had told him to stop, the beatings continued. The 15 women in the group decided that they would go together to confront the husband. They told him that they supported his wife and that he must stop beating her. Knowing that the abuse was no longer secret and that others cared for his wife enough to confront him, the husband stopped beating and hurting his wife.

Jeff Rutt Image credit: HOPEInternational.org

For Jeff Rutt and HOPE International, microfinance enables women from developed countries to reach out to their fellow women in developing countries, giving them the freedom and respect they have been denied for a long time.

To know more about Mr. Rutt and HOPE International, visit www.hopeinternational.org.