King’s Ridge signage was clean and simple and featured the now-famous King’s Ridge charger on a simple white background. The main sign at the sales office featured a unique feature: a cutout of the horse in relief to add new interest. It was an eye catching signage campaign!

In addition, an 8′ high King’s Ridge charger statue was created to bring the logo to life.

The King's Ridge charger statue

Thank you to PM staff, Zancor Homes and to all of our suppliers, friends and family who helped us bring King’s Ridge together!

PM has a new addition. We snapped up a go-getter in the industry. We welcome Banar Pasha to the team. Banar’s background in marketing and enthusiasm were just up our alley. With Banar’s experience in signage and production, we are even stronger than before. If you haven’t met Banar, you’ll meet him soon.

Congratulations to Zancor! We just received BILD SAM nominations, and we’re very pleased to announce a strong showing. Nominated in these categories:
• Project of the Year, King’s Ridge
• Best Signage, King’s Ridge
• Best Sales Office, King’s Ridge
• Best Salesperson or Team, Brooklin’s Forest (Yeah, Brooklin’s Forest!)
• Best New Home Design, semi-detached or townhome over 1500 sq. ft., King’s Ridge
• Best New Home Design, single over 2500 sq. ft., Brooklin’s Forest

Flush heat vents – they are so much nicer than the standard grate. Love that they blend with flooring.

This makes an awesome room divider.

A mile high view of the massive show, which I’m told is smaller than previous years.

Only in the US! A giant lobster. Totally unrelated, but cool nonetheless.

And of course, no visit to Florida is complete without a visit to the
W A F F L E H O U S E
which is low on atmosphere, high on carbs.

But the will to dig out and thrive once again is very strong.

An now some quick highlights:

Why does this dolphin look like a tuna?

We are curious as to why the ‘Big Dolphin’ sign has a giant tuna on it. Hmmm?

Very affordable and beautiful glass vanity bowls

We saw these glass vanity bowls which run around US $72 each and thought that they would be a wonderful thing to add to a finishes package for not a lot of money.

Iron-a-way a neat idea for condos

The Iron-a-way product would be great for condos and small starter homes or urban towns.

Glass Walk - pretty gorgeous

Glass Walk – beautiful. The guy in the booth told us about placing a glass floor above a wine cellar so people could look in. It would look like a million bucks. This is also suitable for stairs and walls.

The gigantic Kohler booth

The Kohler booth was huge and as always very impressive. They do marketing very, very well.

Beautiful etched windows

I snapped photos of these windows – so pretty! I can imagine etching a logo right onto feature windows. Can you imagine the iconic King’s Ridge charger on the windows?

Stay tuned for more builders show action, as I slowly process all my photos!

Congratulations to our friends at Zancor Homes!

Finalists names for 2010 CHBA National SAM Awards.

http://outreach.thebdx.com/eflyer/townephoenix/TownePhoenix_112310/

Love this new website – a complete departure from what we’re used to.

If you think that all is doom and gloom for the condo market, then perk up those ears and listen up, because according to Barbara Lawlor of Barker Real Estate Incorporated, you couldn’t be more wrong! With over 11,500 condo sales in the first half of this year, Ms. Lawlor says she’s feeling positive about the last quarter of 2010. In fact, we could even be in a position to call it our 3rd best year, ever.

Here are a couple other points of discussion from the forum:
1) Who is buying? We shouldn’t be fearful that a high percentage of purchasers are actually investors. These investor buyers help us bring these projects to market. Without their investment, we’d be hard-pressed to get condo projects off the ground. Of note: the average ages of these condo buyers are older than we thought: they are between 42 and 47 years of age, with about 1/3 of them being women. We should look at first time condo buyers as potential 2nd and 3rd time buyers as well, as these buyers often desire more space later on down the road.

2) Investors- Good or Bad? According to Jim Ritchie of Tridel Corporation the majority of condo buyers have been mainly investors. But why is that a bad thing? Investors are viewing condo development as prime investment opportunities – and they’re right. Very few purpose-built rental properties are being built now, and these condominiums provide new rental opportunities. Renters have a desire for newer housing and amenities – just like buyers. This helps replenish the rental market, which is sustained by the high rate of immigration into the city. Therefore investors are first in line to buy these new units at “wholesale” prices, only to turn around and rent them out or resell them at retail prices.

3) Brokers and agents are your friends! As with most new openings, there is usually a special day or period where we invite in brokers and their customers to give them special pricing and first crack at the best units. Well those purchasers who have to wait for second pickings are smartening up and using their own agent now to get those better prices and better units. Additionally, the high volume of immigrants is also a factor in the ever-increasing number of agent driven sales. The fact that their agent can speak their native language gives them an added level of comfort and freedom to discuss freely with the sales reps present.

4) You aren’t just selling hundreds of individual units; you’re selling a Vertical Community. And what is one of the most important features of any community? Amenities. Now we’re not talking about just the surrounding amenities (those are important too!) but the actual building’s amenities. Condo owners need places in their building other than their 500 sq.ft. unit to feel at home in. Therefore indoor and outdoor amenities are critical to the lifestyle and livability of the condo. Health and fitness amenities are a ‘must-have’, non-negotiable. Lounges with free WIFI, multiple movie rooms, fitness rooms and party rooms are critical. Foregoing penthouses for communal areas, bars or lounges may seem like leaving money on the table, but can actually pay off in the long run as they are viewed as rewards and benefits for moving into the condo.

5) People actually LIVE in these units! Hence, there needs to be actual livable space such as food preparation area, and closet space for a vacuum. Furniture plans are a good idea and can show buyers how small condo spaces can accommodate furniture, so it’s a good idea to use them.