News, Information and Ideas from Around the Web

News Stories Not the Driving Force Behind Home Buying
The nation’s prospective home buyers may derive some of their information on the housing market from the news media, but at the end of the day the things that matter far more when they are deciding whether to make a purchase include the price of the new home, mortgage interest rates and their housing needs, according to a new nationwide survey commissioned by NAHB... read more

FEMA Retooling Flood Maps for Uniformity, But at What Price?
An ambitious plan to update the nation’s 92,222 Flood Insurance Rate Maps is going slower than originally planned, but it is still on track to deliver a hurricane-sized hit to home builders in certain parts of the country... read more 

Stock Building Supply Reveals Job Cuts
Stock Building Supply, the second-largest U.S. pro dealer, revealed that it has been gradually reducing its workforce by nearly 2,000 employees through a series of cuts beginning last June, and as recently as Nov. 17... read more