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Consumer Electronics Association Releases State of the Builder Technology Market StudyApr 22, 2013 (Close-Up Media via COMTEX) -- The overall growth of the home technology market remained consistent from 2011 to 2012, demonstrating home technology has a strong, stable foothold, according to new findings in the 11th Annual State of the Builder Technology Market Study released by the Consumer Electronics Association. According to a release, technology installations in new homes reached or exceeded 2008 levels, providing more evidence that the market for built-in home technologies is well on the road to recovery. Structured wiring remains the most common installed technology (70 percent), followed by monitored security (44 percent) and home theater pre-wire systems (27 percent). "These installed technology trends signify that some home technologies have made the transition from luxuries to standard options," said Chris Ely, senior manager of industry analysis, CEA. Home technologies have become valuable marketing tools for new homes. Builders say they continue to find that marketing these technologies is important; close to half of builders surveyed (49 percent) said they find it much more or somewhat more important to market these technologies. Builders increasingly work with electricians, security installers, custom installers and electronic systems contractors, and satisfaction with these contractors is high. Builders reported that they were most satisfied with electrical (79 percent), security installer (77 percent), system integration (75 percent), and electronic system (66 percent) contractors. Across the market of builders, the primary factors driving builder decisions to work with installation service providers remain price (80 percent), reputation (75 percent), completeness of offerings (73 percent), and prior experience (71 percent). Overall, builders report installing popular technologies like structured wiring and monitored security in remolding projects. Small builders (42 percent) saw a greater portion of their revenue stemming from remodeling efforts in comparison to luxury homebuilders and local builders. "Small and custom builders typically install most key home technologies in comparison to national builders, which suggests that this is a competitive advantage for small and customer builders," said Ely. The study also finds that almost all (92 percent) new homes are equipped with broadband cable, up 36 percent from in 2002. With greater broadband access, the report notes that one in four newly built homes in 2012 (23 percent) have a dedicated home theater room as opposed to one in ten in 2010. "The increase in dedicated theater rooms shows that more consumers are realizing the benefits of having these installed systems in their homes," said Ely. The 11th Annual State of the Builder Technology Market Study comes as CEA and HGTV announced this month that it has partnered to build a high-tech home in Jacksonville Beach, Fla. Using CEA's TechHome Rating System (THRS), HGTV built the Smart Home 2013 to meet the Gold TechHome Rating specifications for technology infrastructure. The Gold rating provides a whole-house network that distributes audio, video, data, telephone, television, home automation and security signals into multiple rooms. The 11th Annual State of the Builder Technology Market Study was designed and formulated by CEA Market Research. ((Comments on this story may be sent to [email protected])) |