Residential Construction Contractors Industry Profile

Companies in this industry construct, remodel, or renovate residential buildings. Major companies include DR Horton, KB Home, Lennar, and PulteGroup (all in the US), as well as Daiwa House (Japan), Desarrolladora Homex (Mexico), Gafisa (Brazil), Sun Hung Kai Properties (China), and Taylor Wimpey (UK).

Globally, residential construction revenue has been flat and is not predicted to return to the industry's 2006 peak of $2.5 trillion in revenue until about 2015, according to IHS Global Insight. The strongest growth is expected to come from emerging markets in Asia and Latin America.

The US residential construction contracting industry includes about 160,000 establishments (single-location companies and branches of multi-location companies) with annual sales of about $240 billion. High growth is forecast for the next two years. Key growth drivers include improving housing markets and low interest rates.

Builders of both single-family and multifamily housing are included in the industry, as are residential remodelers. The industry includes general contractors, who build on land owned by others, and operative builders, who build on land they own or control. Specialty trade contractors such as plumbers and electricians, who often work as subcontractors for residential construction contractors or operative builders, are covered in separate profiles.

COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE

Demand for new housing depends on population growth and is linked to interest rates. The profitability of individual companies depends on efficient operations and securing favorable building locations. Large builders have some advantages ...