by David Barista
Following a mostly flat 2012, home builders are projecting higher revenue and more home sales next year.
As the nation’s economy sputters back to life, home builders across the country are finally seeing light at the end of the tunnel and are expecting to see solid gains in 2013. Of the 400 builders that completed our recent 2013 Market Outlook survey, exactly half said they expect to see higher revenue next year compared to 2012, and nearly a quarter (22.6 percent) said they are forecasting annual revenue gains of 10 percent or more.

But builders fully admit that they’re not out of the woods yet. Top challenges cited by survey respondents include the overall economy (60.1 percent indicated it was one of their top-three obstacles); project funding (35.5 percent); continued softness in home prices (31.9 percent); and getting customers qualified for a mortgage (29.0 percent). For more survey results, see the charts below.
Methodology and Respondent Information

This survey was distributed in November 2012 to 86,054 Professional Builder readers. No incentive was offered. By the closing date, a total of 400 eligible readers had responded. Respondent breakdown by discipline: 49.1 percent single-family home builder; 26.6 percent diversified builder/remodeler; 9.8 percent designer/architect; 3.5 percent multi-family builder; and 1.5 percent systems builder; and 9.5 percent “other.”