Fighting the Good Fight

A New Year brings new opportunities and renewed optimism. Despite the past three years of gloom and doom in the housing industry, 2011 seems to be showing some glimmers of hope among remodelers. The mentality of buying a home simply to sell it in a few years for a fast buck is disappearing. Today’s homeowners are staying in homes longer and are looking to remodelers to ensure the homes meet their long-term needs. Despite the housing-industry downturn, this new mind-set could be a boon for remodelers in the years ahead.

To nurture remodelers’ hope and ensure the housing industry, in general, receives a much-needed boost, the Washington, D.C.-based National Association of Home Builders has stocked its arsenal in preparation for another year of advocating on behalf of its constituents. The organization has several battles ahead: seeking stability in the overall economy; conquering legislative issues that affect housing; talking with banks about lending practices; and ensuring fairness within the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Lead Renovation, Repair and Painting Rule; among other initiatives.

Jerry Howard, NAHB’s chief executive officer, spoke exclusively with Qualified Remodeler to discuss the year ahead and assure NAHB’s members, including the all-important NAHB Remodelers, that the organization is ready for the challenges ahead.

Belief System

Howard is not the type of person who can represent an industry in which he doesn’t believe. He grew up in Hilton Head, S.C., where he often helped his father, a resort developer, work on projects. “Growing up in the housing and building industry has given me an appreciation for the importance of housing in our society in terms of its economic value and its societal value,” he says. He built on that appreciation by furthering his education, receiving a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Vermont, Burlington, and a Juris Doctorate from the University of South Carolina, Columbia.

Howard took a firsthand look at the home-buying process during a stint in real estate before he delved into government. He served as the chief lobbyist for the National Council of State Housing Agencies, Washington, where he was instrumental in developing the low-income housing tax credit as part of the Tax Reform Act of 1986.

Howard joined NAHB in 1988, serving as a legislative analyst for tax issues. Always interested in expanding his knowledge and contribution to the industry, he has taken on a variety of roles, including chief lobbyist, within NAHB. Howard was promoted to executive vice president and chief executive officer in February 2001. It’s a job he has been happy to maintain.

“I’ve had many opportunities since I’ve been at NAHB to go elsewhere and down other avenues,” Howard admits. “But I have a great sense of pride in coming to work every day and representing this industry.”

Everything Old Is New Again

Howard’s experience in the housing industry serves him well. Despite our nation’s current economic downturn being the worst in his lifetime, many of the issues the industry is dealing with are not new. One of these issues is tax reform.

The state of our federal budget deficit has spurred President Obama to create the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform, which released its report of recommendations late last year that are designed to minimize the deficit. In place of current mortgage-interest deductions, the commission recommends homeowners in the 28 percent and higher tax brackets get a 12 percent nonrefundable tax credit regardless of whether they itemize their taxes. The credit, which is capped on interest of mortgage debt up to $500,000, is only for a principal residence—not for second homes or home-equity lines of credit.