Defy The Trends http://www.defythetrends.com/ en jonathan@purimage.com Copyright 2008 2008-05-19T01:07:00-06:00 It’s About More Than Just Your Payment http://www.defythetrends.com/blog/its_about_more_than_just_your_payment http://www.defythetrends.com/blog/its_about_more_than_just_your_payment#When:01:07:00Z
Homebuyers need to include energy efficiency in their decision making process when purchasing a home. Energy efficient items that are incorporated into the home are the only items that can actually pay a homeowner a “dividend” every month they own the home. There are four main categories of energy efficiency to consider; Heat and Air Systems, Windows, Insulation, and Appliances. By upgrading to high efficiency on these items a homeowner can typically save 30% plus on energy costs. Monthly savings of upwards of 50% are not uncommon.

What other items in a home actually pay for themselves over time? The answer is none. Only items that directly effect energy usage will provide a return on investment. Where else can you invest $35 to $40 a month and get a return of $70 to $80 a month? A home that is designed with energy efficient systems will typically pay for the upgrades within a matter of a few years.

As an example, to upgrade a typical 2000 square foot house, to incorporate a high efficiency HVAC system, upgrade to Low-E windows, install Open Cell 0.5# Foam insulation, and Energy Star appliances will add approximately $5000 to the cost of the home. This equates to a $35 increase on the monthly mortgage payment. However, these upgrades will result in approximately $850 in yearly savings on utility costs.

In addition to the savings realized, there are several other factors to consider. Mortgage companies now offer Energy Efficient Mortgages (EEM’s). How will an EEM mortgage impact a home buyer? The EEM allows for an increase in qualifying income ratios which directly relates to home buying power. The EEM factors in the reduced operating costs, which increases the Loan-to-Value ratio. The bottom line is a buyer can qualify for a higher priced home.

In Oklahoma there are Federal and State Tax Credits available, up to $6000 total, when a home is built to high energy standards. These credits would completely pay for the upgrades in the previous example. The homebuyer will then realize instant savings of $70 a month.

The intangible items to consider are the comfort level of the home, indoor air quality, the positive impact on the environment, reduction of outside noise levels, third party energy rating assurance, and increased market value just to name a few.

An increased investment in an Energy Efficient home can and will result in one of the highest ROI’s in the marketplace today.


Bart Bartholomew is Manager of Builders Insulation & Building Product. He is one of the leading experts on energy efficiency in the Oklahoma City market and is one of the most active Associate Members of COHBA. He can be reached or by phone at (405) 688-5576. You can learn more about how an energy efficient home is as important as ever by watching the Defy The Trends video entitled "Energy".

]]> 2008-05-19T01:07:00-06:00 No Crisis Here. http://www.defythetrends.com/blog/no_crisis_here http://www.defythetrends.com/blog/no_crisis_here#When:14:26:00Z
Just look at the number of new homes you see being built every day. If we’re in a crisis would we still be building and selling like we are? No.

Despite the recent onslaught of negative news, you would probably agree with me that in most cases it is better to own than to rent. You would also probably agree that new homes are more efficient than older homes. With that in mind you need not look any further than Oklahoma to find some of the country’s most affordable real estate.

We all know we’re in a housing and mortgage crisis, right? Well, not here in Oklahoma…we’re “Defying The Trends”. Just look at the number of new homes you see being built every day. If we’re in a crisis would we still be building and selling like we are? No.
Despite the recent onslaught of negative news, you would probably agree with me that in most cases it is better to own than to rent. You would also probably agree that new homes are more efficient than older homes. With that in mind you need not look any further than Oklahoma to find some of the country’s most affordable real estate.

So maybe you’ve been trying to decide, “When is the right time for me?”

With mortgage interest rates at historic lows, meaning that less of each monthly payment is going to interest and more is going to principal, there is no better time.

Some of the benefits of buying a home:

  • Begin building equity – Money you spend paying back the loan is value you get to keep.

  • Appreciation – homes (unlike most things) get more valuable over time. The U.S. average for real estate appreciation from 1963-2006 was 6.3% (U.S. Census)

  • Inflation – that’s right, inflation. When everything seems to be going up, your mortgage payment never increases. (Fixed rate)

  • Tax advantages – with tax time still fresh on our minds remember that buying a home is a considerable tax advantage. After all, paying $1200 a month for your mortgage is really the equivalent of paying $900 a month in rent. Since most of what you pay for your mortgage in the first years is interest, on a $1200 mortgage payment you get to deduct about $1080 a month. That reduces your taxable income by about $13,000 a year.


So maybe you’re asking, “I wonder how much home I can afford?”

Great question… this is where you get started. Talk to an Oklahoma homebuilder today to be referred to a local lender who will help you get prequalified. This is the best way to find out exactly what price range to start your search in.

Don’t let the national media scare you out of the smartest move you can make.


Jim Schuff is a builder and owner of Vesta Homes. He currently serves as Vice President Secretary of COHBA. He appears in the "Mortgage" video for the Defy The Trends campaign.]]> 2008-05-09T14:26:00-06:00 Oklahoma Still Rising http://www.defythetrends.com/blog/oklahoma_still_rising http://www.defythetrends.com/blog/oklahoma_still_rising#When:14:36:00Z
See the slides below for his reasoning.


The main reasons are steady appreciation in real estate, minimal exposure to the subprime mortgage mess, inventory of existing and new homes for sale coming to a 6 month balance and good job growth. He sees new home starts turning up in OKC by the end of the second quarter 2008.



Caleb McCaleb is a builder, developer, and owner of McCaleb Homes. He is a COHBA Past-President and was the 2007 COHBA Builder Of the Year. He appears in the "Economy" video for the Defy The Trends campaign.
]]> 2008-05-02T14:36:00-06:00 Perceptions, Realities, & No-Brainers http://www.defythetrends.com/blog/perceptions_realities_no_brainers http://www.defythetrends.com/blog/perceptions_realities_no_brainers#When:14:18:00Z
They can afford it and they want it. Why should they be swayed or discouraged by some national housing figures? They need it, they want, they can afford it and it's there, yet they hear a talking head in a New York newsroom tell them it's a bad idea, and amazingly, THEY LISTEN!

Hopefully our campaign will put them back on track to live their lives as they can and should. Why should they sit back? What is the logic? Do they have some alternative investment that is going to alleviate their housing needs? Is their existing home a better investment?

Probably not, and it certainly doesn't cure the enhanced housing need that they have and can afford. Putting these people on the right track is what this is all about, not just refuting the statistics that are out there.

I also took some amusement from a couple of the people that have responded to the campaign. One in particular stated that there must be a problem or else why would we be going to all this trouble to rebut. Well there is a problem...it is one of PERCEPTION. We are not trying to disguise the situation, just explain it like it really is. Thank you for helping us make our point.

Another respondent questioned why so many new home ads talked about price reductions and "sales". Well, this is nothing more than clever marketing. Have you ever know an automobile dealer not to take advantage of a hail storm to have a sale? Or a model change? Or a new location? Or a Holiday? That's just contemporary marketing, using the hot topic to catch attention.


Mark Dale is a builder and owner of Carriage Homes. He is a past President of the Oklahoma State Home Builders Association, was COHBA President in 1990, and currently serves as the Vice President/Treasurer of COHBA. He will serve his second term as President in 2010, and appears in the Validation video for the Defy The Trends Campaign..

]]> 2008-04-28T14:18:00-06:00 It’s Time For Some Remedy http://www.defythetrends.com/blog/its_time_for_some_remedy http://www.defythetrends.com/blog/its_time_for_some_remedy#When:11:00:00Z more cowbell." However, a good ol' fashioned spoonful of truth would do the trick.

I'm one of those builders who likes to spend quite a bit of time in his furnished model home. So much, in fact, I office there on weekdays, and then give my sales staff one weekend off a month so I can cover the model for the weekend. I like keeping track of the vital signs of our market, and the best way to do that is to talk face to face with those out shopping for new homes.

Five...maybe even as recently as three years ago...I'd say the ratio of what we call "tire kickers" vs. true buyers in the market was maybe fifty-fifty on any given Saturday. Now, I'd say I have the "best" traffic I've seen in my decade as a builder. I say "best" because the ratio has changed dramatically to a majority of true buyers out looking. That proves to me there is definite demand alive and kicking in the market for new homes. That's the good side of it.

Where it gets challenging is that more recently in my conversations with these prospective buyers, I often hear comments like:

  • "We're definitely in the market to buy. We're just not sure it's a good time right now."

  • "I have a great job, I have good credit, and can afford a payment. I'm just hearing it's tough to get a loan right now."

  • "We're ready to make the move, but we have a house to sell first, and we hear it's tough to sell right now and not lose money."

I'm reminded of the old notion that if you hear something enough, it will become true, even if it's really false. I'm certain that's what's happening here. We're on the verge of experiencing a self-fulfilling prophecy.

You see, we're in an age of new media. No longer is the local tv news or the community paper our only source of information. No longer is news delivered...or perhaps it's more that it's no longer consumed...in full stories. It's headlines and first-paragraphs. Consumers don't have the time or attention span to dig deep into the facts and think critically about what they're consuming. It's understandable. Heck, I'm even that way. Where that becomes dangerous is when it begins to shape our outlook on something, thus creating an alternative reality by which we form our opinions, build our world-view, and make life-affecting decisions upon. But hey, I'm just a builder, not a philosopher.

When it comes to the Oklahoma City Metro housing market, it seems people are reading the headlines of stories whose facts and projections are based on numbers and statistics from the major "bubble markets," which are now correcting in a big way, and just assuming that it all holds true here. In a sense, it's a "Real Estate Market Hypochondria," as I call it. Combine that with all the stories of foreclosures due to sub-prime loans and ARM resets, and now we've definitely got a virus afoot.

There is where the fever is setting in.

It's time for some remedy, friends, and a good, healthy dose of the facts is just what the doctor ordered. Don't let the national media scare you out of the smartest move you can make.

I hope you'll take two of these and call me in the morning.


Jeff Click is a builder and owner of Jeff Click Homes, L.L.C. He currently serves as the First Vice President of COHBA, and will serve as President in 2009. He appears in the "Timing" video for DefyTheTrends.com.

]]> 2008-04-18T11:00:00-06:00 Why “Defy the Trends?” http://www.defythetrends.com/blog/why_defy_the_trends http://www.defythetrends.com/blog/why_defy_the_trends#When:05:28:00Z

  • The coastal region states and other major cities created unsustainable rates of appreciation. This is largely due to unpractical lending practices such as sub-prime loans as well as up to 135% loans. This type of lending only temporarily qualified these unqualified home borrowers. They were doomed from the start to not be able to afford their house payments. This proved to be a "Bad Trend."

  • Oklahoma has continued to "Defy this trend", due to the normal and reasonable lending practices of our major Oklahoma lenders. When you get a home loan in our state you are treated fairly and are truly qualified to borrow money for your home purchase.

  • Respected economists claim that "good economic conditions" for a state is to look at the number of job openings vs. new home starts. A good market will have a minimum of 1.25 job openings per one new home start. Oklahoma City, for example, has 3 job openings to one new home start. That's almost 2.5 times better than just a good market and that's our trend.

  • Home values in Oklahoma actually increased 4.46% in 2007 according to the Oklahoma Association Of Realtors®. This was the 7th consecutive year that the average sales price of an existing home in Oklahoma has increased on a year to year basis. Since 2000,home values have increased an average of 4.88% per year, which has resulted in growth of almost 40% in our home values over the past seven years.

  • Forbes magazine ranks Oklahoma city as the 2nd "Best Housing Market" in the U.S. based upon our steady pace of appreciation of just over 12%.

  • CNNMONEY.COM counted Oklahoma City as one of the only 11 "Bust Free Markets" in the nation.



Economists further agree that four of the more positive things we have in Oklahoma that insulates us from the "bottomed out" problems of other states are:

  • Our strong energy production

  • Our agriculture and its all time high sales prices of wheat, corn, and beef

  • Our recent attraction and growth in manufacturing

  • As well as our excellent job growth


Our housing market in Oklahoma remains strong! The experts continue to remind us not to pay so much attention to the bad publicity of what has happened in other markets. They have totally different circumstances that turned out negatively. Their trends are not our trends. Do not let misinformation keep you from making the best investment of your life – your new home.

It’s a buyer’s market! It’s a seller’s market! It’s a great HOUSING MARKET!

Why Defy the Trends? It’s simple. There has never been a better time to buy or sell a home in Oklahoma.


Jim McWhirter is a builder, developer, and owner of Gemini Builders. He serves as current President of COHBA, and is featured in the "Value" video for DefyTheTrends.com.
]]> 2008-04-15T05:28:00-06:00