Data from an annual census of its members allows NAHB to construct detailed profiles of particular types of members, such as residential remodelers. The latest census shows that in 2011, NAHB’s typical residential remodeler member had about $536,234 in total revenue, employed 6 people (4 construction and 2 non-construction workers), and started 3 housing units.
The 2011 census further shows that the number of builder members whose primary business is residential remodeling rose to an estimated 11,986, up four percent from the 11,484 number estimated for 2010. Of all NAHB’s builder members, 28 percent reported residential remodeling to be their primary business activity, while another 31 percent reported it to be a secondary activity. This implies that in “all” 59 percent of builder members were engaged in residential remodeling one way or another, topping the list as the activity with the highest overall share of builder involvement in 2011.
|
|
2008 |
2009 |
2010 |
2011 |
| Number of Residential Remodelers |
12,885 |
13,645 |
11,484 |
11,986 |
The census also collects demographic information about the remodeler. For example, in 2011, 94 percent of residential remodelers were male, their median age was 54 years, and their average tenure at NAHB was 13 years. In addition, 46 percent had a college or graduate degree, 35 percent had some college education, and 19 percent had a high school diploma or less. About 12 percent reported building age-restricted housing for people 55 and older.
|
2011
|
||||
| Avg. # of Employees |
6 |
|
Male |
94% |
| Avg. # of Starts |
3 |
|
Female |
6% |
| Median Revenue |
$536,234
|
|
College/Graduate Degree |
46% |
| % Building for 55+ |
12% |
|
Some College |
35% |
| Median Age |
54 |
|
Average NAHB Tenure (years) |
13 |
Eye on Housing 
[…] Profile of the Typical Residential Remodeler May 24 […]
This info, while helpful is confusing to those without a working knowledge of which group we are talking about. My understanding is there are 42,000 builder members or so, and that 28% would give you the 11k plus remodelers. THe more important fact is the 59% who are in remodeling as #1 or 2 and that would calculate to 27,000 members who do remodeling. The fact that we show 6 employees doing 560,000 work is impossibly true and the volume is impossible given the 3 house starts. SO, we are mixing our demographics in the story and implying untruths.
Someone should rewrite for each element of the membership so there is value.
We showed characteristics only of NAHB members who are primarily remodelers, because characteristics of those who engage in remodeling as a secondary activity are likely to be quite different. You are correct in saying that a substantial number of our builders–an estimated 13,534–report remodeling as a secondary category. You are also correct that this works out to about 59 percent of all builder members who are involved in residential remodeling one way or another. The results that appear impossible to you may result from comparing AVERAGE starts and employees to MEDIAN revenue. We usually report averages when possible, because they are typically easier to understand, but can only report median revenue in this case because of the way the question was worded. For reference, the median number of employees for residential remodelers was 3, while the median number of housing starts was 1. Additionally, the question about employees on the payroll does not distinguish between full-time or part-time status.