Chuck Miller's (boisebuilder) Blog

The boundary between the conditioned, indoor living spaces and the unconditioned and outdoor spaces is referred to as the "building envelope" and consists of the walls, floor, and ceiling or roof. An airtight building envelope contributes directly to the energy efficiency and comfort of a home. A...

Insulation is a key element in building a more comfortable and energy efficient home in Boise, Idaho or elsewhere.  Insulation materials are rated according to their ability to resist heat flow. The thermal resistance rating is known as an "R-value". The higher the R-value of a material, the bett...

An effective building envelope - the first floor, exterior walls, and roof - is a key element for an energy-efficient home. Advanced framing techniques increase efficiency and comfort while decreasing costs.  Most homes in Boise are framed with wood and wood loses or gains heat more quickly than ...

The 2010 AVID Home Design Driver Research Survey showed that the majority of home buyers rated energy efficiency as a "Must Have" for their new homes.  Although Boise and southwestern Idaho have some of the lowest power rates in the nation, home buyers still want their new homes to be energy effi...

The 2010 AVID Home Design Driver Research Survey provides some insight into what features today's home buyers equate with a green home. AVID Ratings is a a leading provider of enterprise-level surveys specializing in the home building industry. The AVID survey studied the preferences of nearly 12...

Did you know that May is National Remodeling Month?  Since the downturn in new residential construction that began in 2007, the media has been focusing on the number of new starts as the key indicator of the health of the residential construction industry.  But focusing on the number of starts ig...

For the past five months (September 2009 through January 2010), the Consumer Price Index (CPI) has risen 0.2% per month. Building materials prices are an exception to general inflation trends, which appear to be tame.   On a year-over-year basis, the Consumer Price Index (CPI) is up 2.6%. Excludi...

The headline read "Construction Worker Rated the 8th Worst Job."  Being a Builder who started out as construction worker, I just had to investigate further.  Here is what I found. The headline referred to JobsRated.com's 2010 Jobs Rated report which the website says "offers a comprehensive analys...

DO YOU HAVE YOUR NIKES ON? by Darcy Keith When running in the race of life, what kind of shoes is on your feet? Are they high-heeled stilettos, loafers, house slippers, or tennis shoes? While we may be concerned with what is on our feet and how comfortable they are in the situation, if we don't h...

Welcome to the second in my series of blog posts on the Business of Building.  We started Part 1 with a quiz.  I asked what the average Net Profit for a Builder is in a normal market.  The correct answer was C. 3.7% to 8.7%.  That was based on the National Association of Home Builders 2004 Cost o...