Area homebuilders discuss industry issues ahead of annual home show

As they prepare to open the Annual Home Show in Fort Smith Friday (Feb. 16), area builders discussed the challenges faced in home building and home renovation – including rising costs and declining numbers of skilled workers.

“Higher interest rates. That’s the number one problem,” said Rocky Walker, a realtor, broker, builder and president of the Greater Fort Smith Association of Home Builders (GFAHB). “Then there’s the inflation, the lack of skilled labor and dealing with government and required codes. These are all the things we’re facing now.”

The cost of building a 2,000-square-foot home in the Fort Smith area increased about 30% from 2019 to 2024, Walker said. And part of that is because of increased demands in codes. He said in hopes of removing some of the barriers facing home builders, representatives from home building associations are planning to meet with state officials in hopes of repealing some of the new electrical codes.

“Little Rock makes decisions and then all the cities and counties have to enact these codes. It makes it very hard to be a developer or a builder and get things done,” Walker said.

He said great improvement could come, especially development at Chaffee Crossing, if everyone in the area – the City of Fort Smith, the Fort Chaffee Redevelopment Authority, Sebastian County and homebuilders – could work together to face the challenges of developers.

“I’ve often said, Fort Smith is at the precipice of prosperity. If we could all work together, it would be great,” Walker said.

WORKFORCE NEEDS
But working together would also take growth in the skilled workforce, Walker and Buddy Lloyd of L&L Development agreed.

“We need skilled workers – electricians, plumbers, everything. We really need to encourage young people to go to these trade schools and learn these trades, to learn construction,” Lloyd said. “These trades are always hiring. We need the workers.”

He said places like the Fort Smith Public School District’s Peak Innovation Center and other trade schools in the area are ready to train more skilled workers. Now the key is to get more students involved and on their way to “good careers.”

“We have the product. We need the people,” he said.

Lloyd is the builder of the GFAHB 2024 Showcase Home, which is the association’s main fundraiser of the year and will be opened to the public in the fall. This year the home will be built in the East Village housing subdivision in Greenwood. East Village is a “one-of-a-kind” subdivision located along Arkansas Highway 10 East,  across from the entrance to Vache Grasse Country Club in Greenwood.

It will eventually consist of 251 homes and feature 2.5 miles of paved walking trails that will connect with the Greenwood Trail System, Lloyd said. It also will have pavilions scattered along the trail, and will be “a very unique place,” according to promotional literature. Homes in the subdivision will include cottage style (starting at 1,200 square feet), mid-level homes (starting at 1,500 square feet), and estate sized homes (starting at 1,800 square feet).

SHOWCASE HOME
The showcase home will be an 1,800-square-foot, three-to-four-bedroom, two-bath home with a two-car garage, Lloyd said. The fourth bedroom could also be an office. The home will feature an efficient gas fireplace, gas cooktop and 95% gas furnace.

“We’re putting in a dual fuel pump,” Lloyd said. “Every house I build is energy efficient. They have an insulated slab and spray foam insulation or blown-in cellulose insulation and (R-value 49 insulation) in the attic. This one will have all of that.”

Energy efficiency is the key to homebuilding and home renovations in this time of high interest rates, Lloyd said.

“What you have to spend extra on the building, you can make up on the cost of operating the home,” he said.

With “almost every utility company” giving rebates for energy efficiency building, there are plenty of incentives to making homes more energy efficient, including ways to have old windows replaced with newer energy-efficient ones, Lloyd said. Bathrooms can become more energy efficient by installing low-flow commodes, showers and fixtures. On-demand, tankless hot water heaters are also a good energy-efficient choice.

“You can save money on water and keep things more efficient,” Lloyd said.

The Greater Fort Smith Association of Home Builders return of the Annual Home Show, which will be Friday through Sunday (Feb. 18) at  the Fort Smith Convention Center is a one stop destination for homeowners, DIY enthusiasts, and anyone looking to explore the latest trends in  home improvement, a news release said. It will showcase an extensive array of home improvement products and services and have over 100 exhibitors.