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Screen Tight Awarded US Patent for Industry Changing Column Wrap, Wrap N' Snap
<p /><b>GEORGETOWN, S.C. (February 2, 2012) —</b> Screen Tight of Georgetown, South Carolina is proud and pleased to announce that after six years, the US Patent and Trade office has issued a utility patent (U.S Patent No. <a target="_blank" href="http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO1&Sect2=HITOFF&d=PALL&p=1&u=%2Fnetahtml%2FPTO%2Fsrchnum.htm&r=1&f=G&l=50&s1=7,997,044.PN.&OS=PN/7,997,044&RS=PN/7,997,044">#7,997,044</a>) on it innovative and industry changing column wrap product line. The column wrap, typically comprised of foamed cellular pvc, was introduced at the International Builder Show in 2006. The product has been featured on HGTV, received numerous innovation awards and accolades from the building products industry, including being named the best new product by Remodeling Magazine in 2008.
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<a href="http://www.ScreenTight.com/prod-wrapnsnap.shtml"><img src="http://www.ScreenTight.com/img/sub-left-WNS-overPostSnap.jpg" border="0" alt="Wrap and Snap receives US Patent" align="right" hspace="13"/></a>
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<p /><font size="1"><i>Wrap N' Snap is installed in minutes and<br />lasts a lifetime! <a href="http://www.ScreenTight.com/prod-wrapnsnap.shtml">Learn more...</a></i></font></p>
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The column wrap, known as <a href="http://www.ScreenTight.com/prod-wrapnsnap.shtml"><b>Wrap n Snap</b></a>, relies on a v grooved, temporarily hinged and taped mitered corners combined with a securement or snap lock and friction fit feature that holds the opposing ends together, allowing the glue to dry and become permanently fixed, enclosing a structural post. The product is suited for exterior or interior columns.
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Guerry Green, the inventor and owner of Screen Tight, said, "it is very satisfying to receive a patent on an invention that has become a standard in the industry." He went on to say, "if imitation is the sincerest form of flattery then we are very flattered because our invention has been duplicated over the last few years. Fortunately, the founders of our nation saw the need to reward innovation with patents." Green, a former home remodeler and holder of several national and international patents, claims that his years of experience in the remodeling industry taught him the value of products that save time and money. Wrap n Snap takes a fraction of the time to install versus trimming out columns on site with wood or composite trim boards.
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The column wrap is complimented by an array of accessories, including many pre cut and mitered trim options. The product includes tapered and craftsmen style columns that also utilize the easy to install and assemble features of the product. Wrap n Snap is available through lumber yards and home improvement warehouses across the country. For additional information view their website, <a href="http://www.ScreenTight.com/">www.screentight.com</a> or contact them at 800 768 7325 or <a href="mailto:wrapnsnap@screentight.com">wrapnsnap@screentight.com</a>.
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<b>Media Contact:</b><br />
Nicole Ward<br />
Screen Tight <br />
PH: 843-545-2886<br />
EMAIL: <a href="mailto:nicole@screentight.com">nicole@screentight.com</a>
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<p /><b>Sales Contact:</b><br />
Guerry Green<br />
843-527-7658<br />
EMAIL: <a href="mailto:guerry@screentight.com">guerry@screentight.com</a></p>
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Housing Starts Fall in December, But Single-Family Starts Up 4.4 Percent
<p />Privately-owned housing starts in December were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 657,000, 4.1 percent below the revised November estimate of 685,000, according to figures released this month by the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development.</p>
<p />Single-family housing starts in December were at a rate of 470,000, 4.4 percent above the revised November figure of 450,000. The December rate for units in buildings with five units or more was 164,000.</p>
<p />"Today's report adds to the growing evidence that demand for new, single-family homes is finally starting to firm up in an increasing number of markets nationwide," said Bob Nielsen, chairman of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) and a home builder from Reno, Nev. "This emerging trend is allowing builders to put more crews back to work, and could be even stronger if not for the overly tight credit conditions that prevail for both builders and buyers, as well as the continuing foreclosure crisis and the challenges of obtaining accurate appraisal values on new homes. Policymakers should be doing everything possible to alleviate these problems and nurture the fledgling housing recovery in order to promote job and economic growth."</p>
<p />"This report is in keeping with our expectations for slow but steady improvement in the single-family market, where production hit its lowest yearly rate in over 50 years in 2011," said NAHB Chief Economist David Crowe. "Meanwhile, it should be noted that the decline in multifamily starts in December was coming off a dramatic increase from the previous month and simply brought that sector back closer to trend. Apartment production generally continues to gain strength heading into 2012 after posting a more-than 50 percent gain in 2011." Looking forward, NAHB is forecasting gains of approximately 17 percent in both single- and multifamily housing production in 2012.</p>
<p />Combined single- and multifamily housing starts fell 4.1 percent to a 657,000-unit rate in December due to the multifamily side retreating 20.4 percent from a big gain in the previous month, to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 187,000 units. However, for the year as a whole, overall housing production was pegged at 606,900 units, which was 3.4 percent better than the overall number of starts in 2010.</p>
<p />Regionally, December housing starts rose 54.8 percent in the Midwest following a big decline in the previous month. The Northeast posted a 41.2 percent decline that offset a big gain in the previous month, while the South and West also posted declines of 3.0 percent and 17.6 percent, respectively.</p>
<p />Permit issuance, which can be an indicator of future building activity, held virtually flat at a 679,000-unit rate in December. Single-family permits rose for a third consecutive month, by 1.8 percent to 444,000 units, while multifamily permits declined 3.7 percent to 235,000 units.</p>
<p />Regionally, permits rose 5.8 percent in the Midwest and held unchanged in the West, but declined 6.5 percent in the Northeast and 0.6 percent in the South in December.</p>
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Builder Confidence Rises Fourth Consecutive Month in January
<p /><b>WASHINGTON -- </b>Builder confidence in the market for newly built, single-family homes continued to climb for a fourth consecutive month in January, rising four points to 25 on the NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI), released recently. This is the highest level the index has attained since June of 2007.</p>
<p />"Builder confidence has now risen four months in a row, with the latest uptick being universally represented across every index component and region," noted Bob Nielsen, chairman of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) and a home builder from Reno, Nev. "This good news comes on the heels of several months of gains in single-family housing starts and sales, and is yet another indication of the gradual but steady improvement that is beginning to take hold in an increasing number of housing markets nationwide -- and that has been shown by our Improving Markets Index. Policymakers must now take every precaution to avoid derailing this nascent recovery."</p>
<p />"Builders are seeing greater interest among potential buyers as employment and consumer confidence slowly improve in a growing number of markets, and this has helped to move the confidence gauge up from near-historic lows in the first half of 2011," noted NAHB Chief Economist David Crowe. "That said, caution remains the word of the day as many builders continue to voice concerns about potential clients being unable to qualify for an affordable mortgage, appraisals coming through below construction cost, and the continuing flow of foreclosed properties hitting the market."</p>
<p />Derived from a monthly survey that NAHB has been conducting for more than 20 years, the NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index gauges builder perceptions of current single-family home sales and sales expectations for the next six months as "good," "fair" or "poor." The survey also asks builders to rate traffic of prospective buyers as "high to very high," "average" or "low to very low." Scores from each component are then used to calculate a seasonally adjusted index where any number over 50 indicates that more builders view conditions as good than poor. </p>
<p />Each of the HMI's three component indexes registered a fourth consecutive month of improvement in January. The component gauging current sales conditions rose three points to 25, which was its highest point since June of 2007. The component gauging sales expectations in the next six months also rose three points, to 29 -- its highest point since September 2009. And the component gauging traffic of prospective buyers rose three points to 21, its highest point since June of 2007. </p>
<p />The HMI also posted gains in all four regions in January, including a nine-point gain to 23 in the Northeast, a one-point gain to 24 in the Midwest, a two-point gain to 27 in the South and a five-point gain to 21 in the West. </p>
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New Home Sales Fall 2.2 Percent in December
<p /><b>WASHINGTON -- </b>Sales of new single-family houses in December 2011 were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 307,000, 2.2 percent below the revised November rate of 314,000, according to estimates released jointly today by the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development.</p>
<p />Following three consecutive months of gains, sales of newly built, single-family homes edged down 2.2 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 307,000 units in December, according to newly released figures from the U.S. Commerce Department.</p>
<p />"December's small decline in new-home sales follows three consecutive months of gains and means the fourth quarter was still stronger than the third," noted Bob Nielsen, chairman of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) and a home builder from Reno, Nev. "The bottom line is that, while 2011 was the worst year for new-home sales on record, signs of gradual improvement began to emerge near the end of the year across a growing number of markets. This nascent recovery should continue to gain strength in the year ahead as more buyers take advantage of the very good deals that out there for newly built homes."</p>
<p />NAHB is forecasting that new-home sales will rise 18 percent in 2012 following a 7.3 percent dip to the lowest number in the history of the government's recordkeeping (302,000 units) in 2011.</p>
<p />"The three-month moving average for new-home sales and numerous other indicators -- such as builder confidence, new building activity and the razor-thin inventory of new homes for sale -- show that the market is basically holding its own, and no longer moving backwards," said NAHB Chief Economist David Crowe. "However, many of the same challenges that builders have cited in the past continue to pose obstacles to the market's advancement, including buyers' inability to sell an existing home, consumer concerns about job security, and tight credit conditions for both building and buying new homes."</p>
<p />December's decline in new-home sales was mostly due to a 10.1 percent dip in the South, which is the nation's largest housing market. The Midwest posted a more modest decline of 3.7 percent, while the Northeast and West posted substantial gains of 46.7 percent and 9.0 percent, respectively.</p>
<p />The inventory of new homes for sale continued to slide to a new record low of 157,000 units in December, which is a 6.1-month supply at the current sales pace. </p>
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Remodeling Market Index Rises to Five-Year High
<p />Remodeling sentiment rose to the highest level in five years, according to the National Association of Home Builders' (NAHB) Remodeling Market Index (RMI) for the fourth quarter of 2011. Released today, the RMI increased to 46.6 in the fourth quarter from 41.7 in the third quarter.</p>
<p />In the fourth quarter, the RMI component measuring current market conditions rose to 48.4 from 43.0 in the previous quarter. The RMI component measuring future indicators of remodeling business was also positive, increasing to 44.8 from 40.4 in the previous quarter.</p>
<p />An RMI below 50 indicates that more remodelers report market activity is lower (compared to the prior quarter) than report it is higher. The overall RMI averages ratings of current remodeling activity with indicators of future activity.</p>
<p />"As more consumers remain in their homes rather than move in this economy, remodelers benefited from a gradual increase in home improvement activity, taking us to a five-year high," said NAHB Remodelers Chairman Bob Peterson, CGR, CAPS, CGP, a remodeler from Ft. Collins, Colo. "2011 ended on a strong note for the remodeling industry."</p>
<p />Current market conditions improved significantly in all four regions over the third quarter of 2011. The RMI reported higher market activity in two important categories: major additions 52.3 (from 45.2) and minor additions 50.1 (from 45.7).</p>
<p />Future market indicators in each region also experienced gains from the previous quarter. Two of the indices reported a level over 50: calls for bids at 50.7 (from 45.4) and appointments for proposals at 50.1 (from 43.3), while work committed for the next three months only rose to 31.5 (from 29.9).</p>
<p />"With several key components above 50, the latest RMI provides reason for guarded optimism going forward," said NAHB Chief Economist David Crowe. "The residential remodeling market has been improving gradually, mirroring the trend in other segments of the housing market. Stringent lending requirements and economic uncertainty continue to be a drag on demand, but we expect a modest growth in remodeling activity to continue throughout 2012."</p>
<p />For more information about remodeling, visit <a href="http://www.nahb.org/remodel">www.nahb.org/remodel</a>.</p>
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