CHBA BC Appoints New Chief Executive Officer
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Canadian Home Builders’ Association of BC appoints new Chief Executive Officer
BURNABY, (July 30, 2013) – The Canadian Home Builders' Association of BC has appointed Neil Moody as the association's new chief executive officer effective August 1, 2013.
“After a lengthy recruitment process which brought forth several impressive candidates, we are pleased to welcome Neil as our new CEO,” said CHBA BC President Nathan Stone. “Neil’s strong background in membership-driven associations will serve British Columbia’s residential construction sector well as we move forward in these challenging but exciting times. His experience working with national governments as well as business organizations will allow us to continue to grow as an industry association.”
Moody’s entrepreneurial background will be helpful in understanding and serving the needs of CHBA BC’s members. He began his first successful manufacturing business at age 18 and later served as a builder and subcontractor of single-family homes in White Rock. Moody’s most recent position as a real estate investment and renovation consultant with links to the Asia Pacific and Japan, came on the heels of spending 14 years as executive director of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce in Japan. Moody was also the chair of the Foreign Chambers of Commerce in Japan, and initiated the formation of the Canadian Chambers of Commerce and Business Associations in Asia, a membership network representing more than 3,000 members.
“This is an exciting time to take on a leadership position within the residential construction industry, which is one of the most important drivers of the province’s economy,” said Moody. “There are several indications that we’re entering a period of positive growth and employment, but we’re also likely on the cusp of rising interest rates. The way these and other factors play out over the coming months will present many opportunities as well as challenges.”
There are several consumer-driven trends emerging within the residential construction sector including the push for smaller and more affordable units, mortgage helpers including secondary suites and laneway housing, densification along transit lines, and the redevelopment of malls to include residential space.
Moody takes over from M.J. Whitemarsh, who led the association for over 13 years.
The Canadian Home Builders' Association is the voice of the residential construction industry in Canada, representing more than 8,500 member firms across the country, including more than 1,870 members with CHBA BC. The association’s members include new home builders, renovators, developers, trade contractors, building material manufacturers and suppliers, lenders and other professionals in the housing sector. B.C.’s home building and renovation communities generated 193,000 direct jobs in 2012 with an overall value of $15 billion, including $10 billion in wages. In 2012/13, B.C.'s property transfer tax generated $887 million iin tax revenues for the province.
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BACKGROUNDER
Neil Moody takes over as CHBA BC CEO at a critical time for the residential construction sector.
Emerging trends, driven by consumer demand, include:
Smaller, more affordable units which require more innovative and creative design.
A rise in secondary suites within single-family dwellings and the creation of coach homes and laneway housing in several B.C. municipalities.
Downsizing empty nesters relocating to smaller homes often outside the Lower Mainland.
A push for transit-oriented development, particularly along Metro Vancouver SkyTrain lines.
The redevelopment and densification of shopping malls to include residential towers including Station Square, Lougheed Mall and Brentwood Town Centre in Burnaby and Oakridge Centre in Vancouver.
Challenges and opportunities facing the sector include:
- The provincial as well as the global economy is expected to continue to improve over the coming months; a strong economy means a strong housing industry.
- Low mortgage rates continue to encourage first-time homebuyers to enter the market and existing homeowners to renovate.
- When interest rates do rise, they will adversely affect housing affordability.
Housing costs are driven by supply and demand. In British Columbia, the ability to supply housing is vastly influenced by land availability. Factors influencing affordability that can be controlled include:
- A modification or elimination of the property transfer tax which is applied every time land changes hands from raw land to a developer, from the developer to a builder, and from the builder to a consumer.
- The release of marginal lands from the Agricultural Land Reserve and Industrial Land Reserve to allow for residential construction.
- A decrease in development cost charges which vary greatly from one municipality to another as well as expedited process times.
- The creation of a renovation tax credit at the provincial and/or federal levels.
The residential construction industry in B.C. has a large impact on the province’s economy:
- New home construction is forecasted to end 2013 with 27,100 total housing starts, down by 1.3 per cent over 2012.
- The sector generates 3.5 person years of employment with every home built or renovation completed.
- There were 127,600 jobs generated in new home construction, renovation and related fields in 2011 and 65,400 jobs in home renovation and repair. The residential construction sector is one of B.C.’s largest employers.
- Sales of existing homes also drive job creation. The sale and purchase of homes in British Columbia generates 34, 595 direct and indirect jobs.
- The overall value of the industry is $15 billion. Every home sale produces approximately $60,000 in spinoff spending, a further contribution to the province’s economic well-being.
- B.C.’s home building and renovation community provided $10 billion in wages to workers throughout the province in 2012, with $6.6 billion from the new home sector and $3.4 billion on the renovation side. In 2012/13 B.C.'s property transfer tax generated $887 million in revenues for the province.
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