Blogs

Residential Products Online content is now on probuilder.com! Same great products coverage, now all in one place!

Opinion

If local associations across the country follow the Texas Association of Builders' lead, it could make a huge difference to the future of the skilled trades

New initiatives aim to get youths into hard hats and onto construction sites.

Opinion

Let’s Get Small

Building smaller, taller homes on smaller lots can’t be the only solution to midde-class attainability

EYA's Westside at Shady Grove Metro, in Rockville, Md., is a dense, walkable neighborhood with a significant affordable-housing component.

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Flooring

10 Common Subflooring Installation Mistakes—and How to Avoid Them

A refresher on mistakes to avoid when installing subflooring

Opinion

My Generations: A New Way to Look at Consumers

I have about as much in common with someone born in 1946 as I do an upper-age Millennial born in 1981

Opinion

Managing Rising Costs and Risk

Land, labor, and material costs are chipping away at home building's already thin margins

For all the worrying about a home building slump after six years of increasing revenues and numbers of homes built, 2018 proved to have a bottom line of more of the same. 2019 Housing Giants Report

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Insulation

Builder Benefits: The Case For a Predictable Building Envelope

A home’s building envelope serves multiple purposes that offer several benefits to homeowners. Shouldn’t the insulation a builder works with do the same for them?

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Sub-floor Best Practices

Sub-flooring That Can Stand Up to Weather, Moisture—and Sharks

Proof of performance is crucial for builders and contractors considering new products, and the seemingly simple sub-floor is no exception....

Builders want proof of performance. LP took it to the extreme by sending LP Legacy sub-flooring panels diving with sharks.

Business Management

How to Save Serious Money With Progressive Value Engineering

See how Loudermilk Homes is saving thousands of dollars on every home it builds

Progressive Value Engineering approach by Loudermilk Homes

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blog_entry

Building a Legacy of Energy Efficient Homes

What does it take to build energy efficient homes that make a difference? For Legacy Homes in Nebraska, it was a matter of trying something new and working with BASF.

Innovation

Smarter Than You?

If you think it’ll sell homes, and you’re confident in those specs and ability to support them, you’re playing ahead

Smart home_home technology_way of the future

Design

What’s Trending? Trends

Design is all about trends, and home design trends reflect the changing expectations of how we want to live our lives

green space_home building_home trends_biophilic design_Max Pixel photo

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Building Materials

Driving Sustainability by Embracing Efficient Building Methods

The automotive sector has established a consistent blueprint for continuous efficiency. The time has come for the residential construction industry to do the same.

Awards

The Future Is Already Here for Home Building

Home building’s young people are chalking up some amazing accomplishments

building industry leadership with the Professional Builder 2019 Forty Under 40 winners

Opinion

A New Age-Old Question

Like many of you, we struggle with deploying resources to deliver a top-notch product in a dynamic world

Professional Builder digital and print offerings_Pro Builder magazine covers

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Insulation

Be Flexible When Looking for Rigid Foam Insulation

The residential construction industry likes to stick with what it knows when it comes to rigid foam insulation. For BASF’s Justin DeMarco, that’s a mindset that needs to change.

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Sub-floor Best Practices

What’s in Store for Housing in 2019

The new year brings an opportunity to look ahead—to crunch the numbers, predict the trends, and prepare for what’s to come. What does 2019...

Opinion

Lessons Learned the Hard Way

Every year, The New American Home project proves to be a challenge. This year was no exception

TNAH 2019_rear elevation view of outdoor living_photo by Jeffrey A Davis

Opinion

The Puzzle of Selling Green Homes

Many home builders find that selling a green home (or a high-performance or sustainable or net zero home) is at least as hard as building one. Why?

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Insulation

Demystifying Spray Foam

Is spray foam’s reputation earned? BASF’s Chris Rosemond separates fact from fiction when it comes to the insulating material

Best Practices

Trend Alert: 5 Places to Install a Decorative Concrete Floor

Sure, a concrete floor is typical for a basement or garage, but demand is growing for the use of this versatile, low-maintenance flooring...

Concrete home interior | Photo: Unsplash/Kevin Xue

Opinion

The Robots Are Coming!

Pick your head up on occasion to glimpse these new tools and how they’re helping builders do better

Welding robot at work_Creative Commons_CC by 3.0

Opinion

Forecasts, With a Grain of Salt

In business, forecasting is important and, in home building, a must

Building industry forecast_image of bar chart with magnifying glass_Pixabay

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Products

8 Flooring Trends for 2019

What will be trending underfoot in 2019? Count on some familiar flooring styles—think wide planks, large tiles, and oak—as well as a few new looks such as blondes

View of LP Legacy subflooring under a hardwood floor in finished living space and floor trends 2019

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Labor + Trade Relations

8 Strategies to Help Ease the Labor Crunch

Here are a few ways you can address the labor shortage within your own company and for the industry as a whole

Man on construction jobsite (Photo credit: LP)

Home Technology

2019 Home Builder Forecast

As we approach the close of 2018, many are looking for what’s new and what’s next on the home front. In 2019, we’ll see several home styles with staying power, a few fresh designs that are sure to dominate, plus a brand-new generation of homebuyers now on deck. Here are six of the biggest home trends to watch next year:

Optional fireplace (Photo: Miller & Smith)

Home Builders Institute's Schools to Skills Grant Application Open Through December

As Mortgage Rates Rise, Buyers Lose Purchasing Power

Renters Are Choosing Single-Family Homes for These Features