Austin, Texas – April 4, 2001 Builder Homesite, Inc., the emerging builder-founded consortium for the new home market, today announced that Orleans Homebuilders, Inc, ranked 80th in the Builder 100, has signed up as the nineteenth consortium member.
Builder Homesite is backed, endorsed and driven by a consortium of the nation’s premier homebuilders and focused on improving the home selection, buying and ownership experience through the use of online technologies. BHI products are being designed to provide consortium members with the benefits of new sources of revenue from an open, un-biased new home channel, reduced technology acquisition costs and the monetization of each builder’s home and community assets. The nineteen consortium members represent over $33 billion in gross revenue for 2000 and build over 158,000 homes across the continental United States.
“We are exited about the home building market transformation being developed by the Builder Homesite consortium,” said Linda Kelley, VP Sales and Marketing for Orleans Homebuilders, Inc. “We are a leader in using the Internet as a method for communicating our products and believe that it provides a significant competitive advantage to homebuilders. The capabilities of the consortium should have a tremendous impact on the homebuilding industry.”
“Each builder that joins the consortium, brings a unique perspective on homebuilding and the advances it will take to revolutionize the new home market,” said Tim Costello, President and CEO of Builder Homesite. “Orleans Homebuilders has built a solid reputation for customer satisfaction and they will play a key role in helping define the ‘customer for life’ products and services that will further transform the new home market.”
New Home Industry
Currently, the new home market is estimated to be a $230 billion market in the United States. PaineWebber’s eBuilder Report states that builders effectively using the Internet could see profits per-home improving by up to 30% in the next ten years. Consumer use of the Internet during the home selection process is increasing–research studies show that 62% of all new homebuyers already use the web for sources of information and service. Other research has revealed that over 85% of consumers will use or plan to use the Internet to shop for homes in the next two years.
About Orleans Homebuilders, Inc.
Orleans Homebuilders, Inc. is a leading builder of residential communities in the Philadelphia Metropolitan area. The company builds condominiums, townhouses and single family homes. Orleans Homebuilders is a public company listed on the American Stock Exchange unders the symbol “OHB”. The company is actively developing over 26 communities in Pennsylvania and New Jersey.
About Builder Homesite, Inc. and NewHomeSource.com
Founded in Austin, TX in 2000 by a consortium of 32 of the nation’s largest homebuilders, Builder Homesite, Inc. (BHI) represents over 225,000 new home sales annually. BHI’s mission is to offer improved technology and marketing solutions for the new home industry. The first product by Builder Homesite is NewHomeSource.com, a consumer website offering the most comprehensive information and selection of new homes available on the Internet. Because of the extensive distribution network, more and more builders are making BHI their entry point into the Internet. By providing data to New Home Source, builders can also participate in BHI online partner channels, including Yahoo, eBay, CitySearch, Homegain, newspaper and realtor websites.
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- Eleanor Bowman
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