From NAHB

Key provisions in the tax extenders packageinclude:

Section 45L tax credit for energy efficient newhomes. Provides builders a $2,000 tax credit forexceeding energy standards by 50%. The baseenergy code is the 2006 International EnergyConservation Code plus supplements. Section45L is expected to save home buildersapproximately $380 million annually in taxes for2015 and 2016 construction activity.

Fixed credit rate for 9% and a few 4% low-income housing tax credit (LIHTC) projects. Thebill will renew the 9% fixed rate for 2015 and2016 allocations. In a step forward formultifamily developers, it also will now include afixed 4% LIHTC rate when used to purchase andimprove existing properties that are not federallysubsidized or financed with tax-exempt bonds.

The 4% fixed rate also requires the property tobe placed in service after the date of enactmentfor credit allocations made before Jan. 1, 2017.

Section 25C tax credit for qualified energyefficiency improvements. This is a 10% tax creditsubject to a $500 lifetime cap, with lower caps forcertain products like windows, for consumers toinstall qualified energy efficient upgrades. Theextension of 25C will now make eligible allroofing materials meeting the Energy Starguideline and also updates standards for hotwater heaters, biomass fuel stoves, oil hot waterheaters and doors and windows. Remodelersoften leverage 25C tax credits when working withclients. Section 25C is expected to save homeowners who remodel almost $700 millionannually in taxes for 2015 and 2016improvements.

Section 179D energy efficient commercialbuildings deduction. Provides a deduction up to

$1.80 per square foot for commercial buildings,including multifamily buildings built under thecommercial code, that exceed specific energyefficiency minimums.

Section 163 deduction for mortgage insurance.Allows taxpayers, subject to an income cap, todeduct premiums paid for private mortgageinsurance and FHA/RHA/VA insurancepremiums. The deduction for mortgage insuranceis expected to save home owners more than$1.1 billion per year for tax years 2015 and 2016.

Bonus depreciation. Extends the 50% bonusdepreciation through 2016.

Section 179 expensing. Increases the maximumexpensing amount to $500,000 for qualifiedproperty on up to $2 million in property placed inservice.

Mortgage forgiveness tax relief. The provisionwould eliminate any taxes home ownersmightface from banks when renegotiating theterms of a home loan and forgiving a portion ofthe outstanding mortgage. This would apply onlyto principal residences and through the 2016calendar year.

Also of note, the measure includes additionalreporting requirements for mortgage interest thatwould allow the IRS to better enforce the existingrules for claiming the mortgage interest deduction.Currently, mortgage lenders report to the IRS theborrowers mailing address, taxpayer identificationnumber and mortgage interest paid. Under thisprovision, lenders would be required to include thephysical address of the property as well as themortgage balance. These new rules would allowthe IRS to better enforce the $1 million acquisitiondebt limit, the $100,000 home equity loan limit andthe second home rule.

The House has not yet moved on renewal of theextenders. Final resolution of the extenders is notexpected to occur until later this year.

Builders utlookwww.elpasobuilders.com 2015: issue 7

Senate Panel Approves NAHB Priorities asPart of Tax Extenders Package

The Senate Finance Committee

today voted 23-3 to renew scores

of temporary tax provisions

known as tax extenders that

expired this year, including all

those of interest to the housing

community. In general, the

provisions are granted a two-year

retroactive renewal through the

end of tax year 2016, dating back

to the start of 2015.

CFPB AnnouncesNew Lending RulesSet for Oct. 3

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau(CFPB) announced today that it will be institutingnew mortgage lending rules effective Oct. 3. Theimplementation date was originally scheduled forAug. 1 and then pushed back to Oct. 1, beforebeing delayed an additional 48 hours due to latepaperwork filings.

What does this mean for home buyers, homebuilders and lenders?

On Oct. 3, the Good Faith Estimate, the Truth inLending and HUD-1 Settlement Statements will bereplaced by the CFPBs new integrated disclosureforms, the Loan Estimate and the ClosingDisclosure.

The biggest change is that the ClosingDisclosure must be provided to the consumer a

full three days prior to closing, and if there arecertain changes during that 72-hour period, theclosing could be delayed.

NAHB, Others Seek Hold Harmless PeriodNAHB and other industry allies have urged

CFPB Director Richard Cordray to provide a hold-harmless period for the initial months of the newprocess so that good-faith efforts to comply withthe new disclosure regime do not expose lenders,settlement service providers and others toregulatory penalties and litigation.

The American Bankers Association reported

Cordray stating that his agency would be sensitiveto those who are just trying to get it right duringhis appearance before the Senate BankingCommittee on July 15. And so for the first period,which may last many months, the other agenciesand ourselves as we work on this, if we seeerrors, we will point out what they are and howthey should be corrected, said Cordray. We willnot be looking to be punitive to people.

While NAHB appreciates the tone taken byCordray, NAHB is urging Congress to pass Houseand Senate bills H.R. 2213 and S. 1711, whichwould provide a temporary safe harbor fromenforcement of the new lending rules through theend of the year.

To prepare those in the residential constructionfield for the impending rule changes, NAHB held awebinar June 24 to explain how to workproactively with lenders and settlementstakeholders to avoid unnecessary delays tohome closings. A replay of this webinar will beposted on nahb.org.

2 Builders Outlook 2015 issue 7

WERE PROUD TO SERVE THOSE WHOVE SERVED US ALL.

I hope that everyone is having aproductive, successful, and funsummer so far. One thing is for sure, ithas been a hot and humid one. Asmany of you already know, theassociation does not meet in July andnow there are a lot of awesomeevents and opportunities coming ourway to end the year.

Our next Board and GeneralMeetings will be on Wednesday,August 12, at noon. I challenge all ofour board members to bring a guest. Iwill be bringing a guest.

I invite you to participate in thisyears EPAB Bowling eventWednesday, August 19th. A team offour costs $100.00 and this includes

lunch and bowling. This will be a greatevent for fun and networking! Ourcompany signed up for three teamsand is ready to take on any friendlychallenges that may come our way.

Please make sure that you haveOctober 2015 and September 2016marked on your calendars as this iswhen two industry changing eventswill take place. In October of this yearanyone that closes on a new homewill have to sign documents two timesthree business days apart in additionto a newly designed set of paperwork.If anything, changes and I meanANYTHING, even the insurance quotebeing off by one cent, then the Buyermust sign a new disclosure and start

the three day waiting period all over.This is going to almost eliminate thelast week of the month, but I amconfident that our awesome title andmortgage companies will make it assmooth of a transition as possible.

September of 2016 brings yetanother set of challenges to ourindustry as this is when the new IRCand Energy Codes will beimplemented in our city. Ray has beenin contact with the city to setupmeetings to review the upcomingchanges that will affect us. If you areinterested in participating in the reviewplease let Ray or myself know.

Our industry, from what I can gather,is doing slightly better as new home

closings are up year to year aroundsix percent. Though the figure showspromise, it is still hit or missdepending on who you ask. Oneperson (supplier, builder, orcontractor) will tell you they are doingamazing and others will tell you theyneed more work.

In closing, it is that time of year,children are now starting to return toschool so please remind yourcontractors and employees to watchtheir speed as they drive through thecity and new communities. I wish all ofyou continued success. Be safe andGod bless you!

32015 issue 7 Builders Outlook

Edgar MontielPresident,El PasoAssociation of Builders

Upcoming events make for a busy

second half of 2015

Presidents Message

Your Online Showroom for New Homes

Welcome to our July edition, we call

it issue 7. The association traditionally

uses July as a month to relax and

regroup, and this July is no different.

So with that in mind youll notice we

dont have any meetings to report

about or events. But that doesnt

mean your association is not busy for

sure.

We have scheduled a number of

events for the upcoming months and I

want to particularly thank our

Presenting Partners in these. First is

our upcoming EPAB Bowling Event

(we used to call it a tournament but

that would involve having to have

some skills, so we now just use

event, lol). Our partners are HUB

International, HUNT, Foxworth

Galbraith, StrucSure Home Warranty

and Haskins Electric. All of these

members jumped in with both feet

quickly and without prodding. They all

are always ready to help out and I

want to thank them publically for doing

so. Now its your turn, sign up your

team of four or help us with letting us

hang your banner inside Bowl El

Paso. It will be fun as usual,

competitive in some cases. Weve got

some very cool medals to hand out for

best and worst scores. Its fun and its

inside. Great combination for the hot

time in our desert southwest. Call the

office to sign up.

Some other news is that weve

firmed up our StrucSure presents Pro

Am Golf Tour featuring the club pros

from around the west Texas, New

Mexico clubs. The tournament is

November 9 at Coronado Country

Club. Thats the good news. We can

only accommodate 18 teams and

those are gone according to pro Mark

Gonzalez since most of the pros bring

their own teams with them. So how do

you get in? Time to talk with your

local pro so that you get a slot. The

good news is that we can use your

marketing dollars for this one. The

usual opportunities will present

themselves and the decorum will be a

little more restricted, but how nice is

it to be able to play at one of the citys

best, Coronado Country Club. Its

challenging and its classy and it

requires good golf skills. My thanks to

Bobby Bowling IV for making it

happen, and also to Mark Gonzalez,

the new pro at Coronado who was

hired away from Painted Dunes. The

gods of golf were kind to us and we

hope to grow this event to some

prominence inside the city links circle.

Finally a word about membership.

We have published a fact sheet on

Why Membership Matters. We have

some dollar figures attached to that

sheet and clearly it shows that

members really do get a good return

for their membership fee. We think

that this flier is a good way to quantify

your membership and a way to show

prospective members why they should

join. Right now we have El Paso

builders who wont join for one reason

or another and so this flier may show

them that without the association

theyd be paying a whole lot more to

build. Yes they benefit and yes they

know it and they read this publication.

So why arent they members? Thats

a question YOU need to ask each and

every one of them. I dont take the

position that everyone likes me or

maybe some of you, but putting that

aside shouldnt every builder and

every supplier be a member? Look at

what weve done and imagine being

able to do more with more members.

Im amazed that some of the most

prolific builders are not members, and

frankly I think you should ask them

why then invite them to join. Numbers

matter more than personalities. Our

city is in a weird place right now with

housing starts moving along but the

economy in a flux. With the

governments bearing down on adding

taxes and fees its time for all the

players to come together for the future

of new home construction in El Paso.

Copies of the flier will be handed out

at the meetings or you can download

a copy off our website,

www.elpasobuilders.com

Perspective

Ray Adauto,

Executive

Vice President

EPAB

4 Builders Outlook 2015 issue 7

Ahh Summertime!

Get ready for cool events at EPAB

Remodelers RemainConfident

According to the most recent NAHBRemodeling Market Index (RMI) stats,remodeler confidence improved to 59in the second quarter of 2015.

The confidence in the remodelingindustry has been in positive territoryfor nine quarters in a row as the entirehousing industrys situation continuesto improve, said NAHB RemodelersChair Robert Criner, GMR, GMB,CAPS, a remodeler from NewportNews, Va. With an increase inexisting home sales, remodelersreceived more signed contracts andcalls for pricing.

An RMI above 50 indicates thatmore remodelers report market activityis higher (compared to the priorquarter) than report it is lower. TheRMI was 59 in the Northeast, 61 in theMidwest, 57 in the South and 61 in theWest.

Major additions gained steam in thesecond quarter of 2015, rising to 57from 54. Rising from 56 in theprevious quarter to 61, smallerremodeling jobs continued to showstrength.

The RMIs future market conditionsindex rose to 58 from 55 in theprevious quarter. Two of its sub-

components calls for bids andappointments for proposals gainedfive or more points from the previousquarters reading, while the amount ofwork committed for the next threemonths and the backlog of jobsremained steady.

The rebound in remodelerconfidence tracks the overall arc of thehousing industry as it gains strengththrough new and existing home sales,said NAHB Chief Economist DavidCrowe. Gains in the RMI aretempered by ongoing labor shortagesfor work on remodeling projects.

New Home Sales Fall 6.8% Sales of newly built, single-family

homes dropped 6.8% to a seasonallyadjusted annual rate of 482,000 unitsin June, according to newly releaseddata from HUD and the U.S. CensusBureau.

Despite this months drop, wecontinue to hear from our builders thatthere is solid traffic in sales offices anda lot of consumer interest in newhomes, which should bode well forsales moving forward, said NAHBChairman Tom Woods.

We knew that there would be upsand downs on the road back to anormal housing market, said NAHBSenior Economist Robert Denk. As

the economy and job growthstrengthens, we expect to seegradual, continued momentum in thecoming months.

Regionally, home sales rose by 28%in the Northeast. The Midwest, Southand West posted respective declinesof 11.1%, 4.1%, and 17%.

The inventory of new homes for salewas 215,000 units in June. This is a5.4-month supply at the current salespace.

FHA Reaffirms Support forDownpayment Assistance

Ed Golding, principal deputyassistant secretary for housing andhead of the FHA, yesterday issued astatement reaffirming FHAs support ofdownpayment assistance programs,such as those run by state housingfinance agencies.

The announcement comes followingthe recent release of a HUD audit thatfound irregularities by a financialinstitution that used FHA-insured loanswith downpayment assistance gifts.

These programs help creditworthyfamilies buy their first homes incommunities across the country responsibly expanding access tocredit, Golding said. The intent ofour rules regarding downpayment

assistance is clear and allows HFAsthe discretion necessary to fund theseprograms appropriately. HUD is takingactive steps to completely resolve theissues raised in the audit and toprovide proper clarity and guidance tothe market.

OSHA Helps BuildersBeat the HeatAs the intense heat of the summermonths continues, NAHB wants toensure that everyone on your jobsiteknows the dangers of working in thesun, and what to do to stay safe.About a third of all heat-related workerdeaths occur in the constructionindustry.

The Occupational Safety and HealthAdministration (OSHA) is running itsfourth annual summer campaign toeducate workers and employers aboutthe hazards and risks associated withworking in hot weather, and isproviding resources and guidance toaddress them.

The campaign covers three mainareas: what heat illness is, who itaffects and how it can be prevented.Download customizable fact sheets,newsletter articles and art, publicservice announcements, onlinetraining, and educational toolkits here.

OSHA has also developed an appfor iPhones and Androids thatprovides general heat-safetyinformation, tells you the heat indexfor your specific jobsite, and displaysthe risk level for individual workers. Allof the resources, including the app,are available in English and Spanish.

BUILDING SINCE 1950El Paso

52015 issue 7 Builders Outlook

2015 - SO FAR

The EPAB has had a good start to the year

and as we begin the second half of 2015

things are still interesting. For the most part

things have gone as planned, with the year

starting off with IBS in Las Vegas and a very

excellent June general meeting. In between

weve had some challenges including those

with the City of El Paso and new rules from

the Consumer Protection Bureau, a newly

formed federal agency with unlimited

resources (money) and rule making ability.

Every aspect of building new homes in El

Paso has been affected and despite that

many of our builders are doing very well. The

market is ranked 42nd in home construction

across the country, while we rank 17th in

population. That in itself is a little unsettling,

considering the need for housing we

obviously have. But it points out a strong

market for multifamily units and we see a

good portion of those recently constructed.

So looking back at the first half lets revisit

some of our highlights and reflect on what we

might get out of the rest of the year. As

always we are optimistic for the future,

hopeful that the stars line up and that we find

some creative ways to finish strong. With

your help and support the association will

continue to breathe life into equation and work

hard to keep new home construction viable.

A LOOK BACK...

Builders Outlook Issue 7 2015

By Lou Whiteman www.thestreet.com

Home Depot said it would acquireprivately held Interline Brands for$1.625 billion, strengthening itsofferings that cater to professionalcontractors.

Jacksonville, Fla.-based Interline is adistributor and vendor of maintenanceand repair supplies, boasting a portfolioof more than 160,000 productsincluding janitorial and sanitation,plumbing, HVAC, security andremodeling gear. The company isowned by Goldman Sachs CapitalPartners, P2 Capital Partners andmanagement.

For Atlanta-based Home Depot, the

deal offers a chance to broaden itsexposure to construction andmaintenance pros. Interline generatednearly $2 billion in annual sales via anoutside sales force and a distributionnetwork of more than 90 locationsacross the U.S., Canada and PuertoRico.

Though Home Depot is best knownas a retailer to do-it-yourselfers via itsnetwork of 2,270 North Americanstores, the company has been trying tobuild its sales to contractors. HomeDepot has about $83.2 billion in annualsales.

"Addressing the needs of our procustomers is a top priority," Home DepotCEO Craig Menear said in a statement."Interline is a well-run company that hasachieved impressive financial resultsover the last few years." Home Depotalso said that Bill Lennie, president of itsCanada operations, will take over anewly created post overseeing Interlineand the company's other professional,maintenance and installation units.Lennie is a 20-year Home Depotveteran.

Shares of Home Depot were up lessthan 1% near the close of tradingWednesday.

Interline was taken private by the PEarm of Goldman (GS) and P2 Capital in2012 in a deal that valued the company

at $1.1 billion, including about $300million in debt. At the time, Interline hadabout $1.3 billion in annual sales. GSCapital and P2 contributed about$375.6 million in equity, according toregulatory filings, with the companyissuing $928 million in credit facilitiesrelated to the deal.

The company had at least $630million in debt as of December.

The company, prior to the go-private,was a consolidator, spending $95million in 2011 for Northern ColoradoPaper Inc. and in 2010 buyingCleanSource of San Jose, Calif., for$54.6 million. The deal is expected toclose before Nov. 1, and Home Depotsaid it expects the transaction tocontribute to fiscal 2015 results.

8 Builders Outlook 2015 issue 7IN BUSINESS

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92015 ISSUE 7 Builders Outlook OSHA Slams

Builders with Hefty

Fines, Jail Time for

NoncomplianceNAHB

If youre in the construction business,you may want to ensure that yourworksite is free from serious safety risksand hazards.The Occupational Healthand Safety Administration (OSHA)recently issued several hefty fines, andeven jail time, to a number ofconstruction companies thathadrepeated and serious safetyviolations.

In May, nine contractors working atanewly constructed luxury housingcomplex got slapped with more than$150,000 in finesafter OSHAinspectorsvisited the work site last fall. Inspectorscited the contractors for exposingemployees to a number of safety hazardsand risks, including 35-foot falls, exposedrebar, head and eye injuries and otherhazards that could lead to death orserious injury.

This incident is notable because OSHAcited nearly all of the contractors on site,including the developer, project manager,a roofing company, window outfitters, andcarpentry, masonry and drywall tradesubs. Of the nine companies cited, OSHAhad previously inspected four of them forserious violations.

Onemonth later,a president and vicepresident of a local roofing companywere arrested for failing to comply with acivil contempt order that came as a resultof nonpayment of fines for multipleOSHA infractions. In 2011 and 2012,

OSHAconducted several inspections ofthe companys work sites and foundmultiple fall protection, eye and faceprotection and ladder safety violations,among others.

When the company failed to paypenalties of more than $195,000 plusinterest and fees, and continued toviolate OSHA standards, the courtsissued the arrest.After spendingmorethan a week in jail, the owners werereleased on bond andgiven 30 days toeither pay off the outstanding penalties,or demonstrate an inability to pay andcertify that they have worked toresolvethe OSHA violations cited in priorinspections. Their final hearing isscheduled for Aug. 26.

More recently, two sister companieswere cited with willful and repeat safetyviolations,including fall hazards forworkers installing wood framing morethan 10 feet off the ground. The citationsresulted in proposed penaltiesof$153,090. According to the agency,the parent company has a history ofOSHA violations and was shut downearlier this year. Its former ownerrestarted the company astwo new onesin February, but continues to ignoreOSHA regulations.

Osha Confined

Spaces Rule TAB

Confined spaces, such as manholes,tanks, or sewers, are work areas that arenot designed for continuous occupancyand may be difficult to exit in the event ofan emergency. On May 4, 2015, OSHAissued a final rule to increase protectionfor construction workers in confinedspaces.

What is a confined space? As

defined by OSHA, a confined space

has:

Limited means of entry and/or exit Is large enough for a worker to enter it Is not intended for regular/continuous

occupancyWhat are examples of locations where

confined spaces may occur during homeconstruction? Examples of locations inhome building confined spaces mayinclude, but are not limited to: manholes,sewer systems, stormwater drains, watermains, crawl spaces, attics, heating,ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC)ducts, and pits.

What is a permit required confinedspace? A permit required confined spaceis a space that may have a hazardousatmosphere, engulfment hazard, or otherserious hazard, such as exposed wiring,that can interfere with a worker's ability toleave the space without assistance. Onlyworkers assigned and trained to work in apermit required confined space may doso. A permit specifying safety measuresand names of those permitted in thespace must be written before any workcan take place. Employers are alsorequired to develop a written confinedspace program if workers will enter

permit required confined spaces. How does the new final rule differ from

the rules that previously applied toconstruction work performed in confinedspaces? The rule requires employers todetermine what kinds of confined spacestheir workers are in, what hazards couldbe there, how those hazards should bemade safe, what training workers shouldreceive, and how to rescue those workersif anything goes wrong.

If I am a general contractor and hire asubcontractor to do work in a confinedspace. Do I have any responsibilities?Yes, home builders, or controllingcontractors as OSHA labels them, mustdiscuss permit required confined spaceson the site and their hazards withsubcontractors/employers whoseemployees will enter permit requiredspaces.

The rule makes the controllingcontractor the primary point of contact forinformation about permit spaces at thework site. The controlling contractorpasses information it has about permitconfined spaces at the work site on to theemployers whose employees will enterthe spaces (entry employers). Likewise,entry employers must give the controllingcontractor information about their entryprogram and hazards they encounter inthe space, and the controlling contractorpasses that information on to other entryemployers. The controlling contractor isalso responsible for making sureemployers outside a space know not tocreate hazards in the space, and thatentry employers working in a space at thesame time do not create hazards for oneanother's workers.

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10 Builders Outlook 2015 issue 7THE ECONOMY

By Jerry Kronenberg, The Street.com

Home prices are rising 13 times as fast

as Americans' wages bad news for

renters who aim to own their own places

and sellers who want property values to

keep going up.

"Homeownership is getting further out of

reach for the average wage earner in

America," says Daren Blomquist of

RealtyTrac, which recently analyzed

median wage and home-price growth

between 2012 and 2014.

The firm found that while the typical

worker's earnings inched up just 0.3%

during the period, median home prices

shot up 17%.

Blomquist says that's particularly bad

news for renters who hope to switch

eventually to homeownership. "If buying a

home is out of reach, that takes away one

of the most tried-and-true wealth-building

mechanisms that Americans have," he

says.

RealtyTrac attributes the problem to

wages that haven't snapped back from the

Great Recession nearly as much as home

prices have.

Blomquist says that when property

values bottomed out around 2012,

investors and well-heeled consumers

looking for homes to live in rushed in with

either all-cash offers or big down

payments. Neither type of buyer had to

worry about earning enough money to

cover mortgage bills, so they pushed

home prices up faster than local wages

grew.

"This recovery has been driven not by

the hoi polloi, but by cash-rich buyers and

investors who haven't been constrained by

income," Blomquist says.

RealtyTrac measured earnings changes

by looking at U.S. Bureau of Labor

Statistics average weekly wage data for

2012 and 2014's second quarters, the

latest periods with figures available at the

time the firm conducted its study.

For home-price changes, RealtyTrac

compared public property records from

across America for residences sold in

December 2012 and December 2014.

(Researchers deliberately analyzed prices

from a period six months later than the

BLS data because changes in earnings

typically take that long to affect the

housing market.)

Blomquist says the disconnect between

home-price and wage changes doesn't

affect every part of America, but has

affected 140 of the 184 metro areas

RealtyTrac studied. That's 76% of the

total.

The firm uncovered the biggest

divergence in the Central California

community of Merced, a metro area some

130 miles southeast of San Francisco.

Merced faced plummeting home prices

and tons of foreclosures during the

housing bust, but median home prices

rebounded a sharp 42.2% between 2012

and 2014. Unfortunately, the typical local

wage grew only 0.3% meaning property

values increased an astounding 140.6

times faster than earnings.

Phillip May, president of the Merced

County Association of Realtors and a

real estate agent with London

Properties, says local home prices

"dropped too far when the foreclosures

hit, and now they've overcorrected back

upward."

At the same time, workers in the

metro area's key local-government

sector have had few if any raises for

years because the housing bust

decimated the region's property tax

base, he says. "I know lots of police,

firefighters, teachers and other people

with city and county jobs who are just

getting their first increases in quite a

while," May says.

Other markets that RealtyTrac found

have a big dichotomy between home-

price and wage increases include

Memphis, Tenn., (a 98.7-to-1 ratio) and

Santa Cruz, Calif. (a 93.6-to-1 rate).

On the flip side, the firm found 44

markets where median wages actually

grew more than local home prices.

Some of the best performers include

Hagerstown, Md., (no price gains vs.

2.5% higher wages) and Wichita, Kan.

(no price appreciation, but 2% median-

wage gains).

Despite such bright spots, Blomquist

says housing "is at a critical moment. A

lot of markets are still affordable, but

are about to tip over into unaffordability

if this pattern continues."

He expects the mismatch between

wages and prices to drive future

property value increases way, way

down. "I think the likely scenario in

most markets will be that over the next

couple of years, home-price

appreciation will either flatten out or

become very slow," the expert says.

ElPasoDisposal

772-7495

Home Prices Are Rising About 17 Times as Fast as Wages

Membership News

112015 Issue 7 Builders Outlook

www.elpasobuilders.com www.epbuilders.org

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The ABCs of InsuranceInsurance

Understanding what certain insurance-related terms mean will help you becomea better insurance consumer.

Annual Limit: A cap on the benefitsyour insurance will pay in a year. Underthe Affordable Care Act, health plans canno longer place annual maximums onbenefits. They can limit certain non-essential covered services or the numberof visits they will cover for a particularservice. After you reach the limit, youmust pay all associated costs for the restof the year.

Balance Billing: When a healthcareprovider bills you for the differencebetween the providers charge and theallowed amount, or the amount yourpolicy will pay. For example, if yourdoctor bills $200 and the policy allows$125, it may bill you for the remaining$75. Preferred providers cannot balancebill you for covered services.

Benefits: The healthcare items orservices your health insurance covers.Your policys coverage documents will listthe benefits it will pay for.

Coinsurance: Your share of the costsof a covered service, calculated as apercent (for example, 20 percent) of theallowed amount for the service. You paycoinsurance plus any deductibles youowe whenever you access a coveredhealth service. Your policy pays the restof the allowed amount.

Coordination of Benefits: A way tofigure out who pays first when two ormore health insurance plans areresponsible for paying the same medicalclaim.

Copayment: A fixed amount you payfor a covered health service, usuallywhen you get the service. It can vary bythe type of covered service. Forexample, you might pay $15 for an officevisit to your primary care physician, but ahigher copayment for visiting a specialist.

Cost Sharing: The share of costscovered by your insurance that you payout of your own pocket. This generallyincludes deductibles, coinsurance andcopayments, but it doesnt include

premiums, balance billing amounts fornon-network providers, or the cost ofnon-covered services.

Creditable Coverage: Havingcreditable coverage will reduce thelength of a pre-existing conditionexclusion period under new job-basedcoverage. Creditable coverage includes

any of the following: a group health plan;individual health insurance; studenthealth insurance; Medicare; Medicaid;CHAMPUS and TRICARE; the FederalEmployees Health Benefits Program;Indian Health Service; the Peace Corps;Public Health Plan (any plan establishedor maintained by a state, the U.S.government, a foreign country);Childrens Health Insurance Program(CHIP); or a state health insurance highrisk pool.

Deductible: The amount you owe forcovered services before your healthcoverage begins to pay. For example, ifyou have a $1,000 deductible, yourpolicy wont pay anything until youvepaid that amount for covered healthservices. The deductible may not applyto all services, such as preventive care.

Essential Health Benefits: TheAffordable Care Act requires health plansoffered in the individual and small groupmarkets to cover essential healthbenefits, a comprehensive package ofitems and services within the following10 categories: ambulatory patientservices; emergency services;hospitalization; maternity and newborncare; mental health and substance usedisorder services, including behavioralhealth treatment; prescription drugs;rehabilitative and habilitative servicesand devices; laboratory services;preventive and wellness services andchronic disease management; andpediatric services, including oral andvision care. No standardized list of EHBsexists; check your plan documents to seewhat it covers.

Grandfathered Health Plan: TheAffordable Care Act exemptsgrandfathered health plans from certainprovisions. A grandfathered plan is agroup health plan created or anindividual health insurance policypurchased on or before March 23, 2010.If your plan is grandfathered, your planmaterials will include a statement sayingit considers itself to be a grandfatheredplan.

High-Deductible Health Plan (HDHP):A plan that features higher deductiblesthan traditional insurance plans. High-deductible health plans (HDHPs) can becombined with a health savings accountor a health reimbursement arrangementto allow you to pay for qualified out-of-pocket medical expenses on a pre-taxbasis.

Health Savings Account (HSA): Amedical savings account available totaxpayers who are enrolled in a high-deductible health plan. Funds youcontribute arent subject to income tax atthe time of deposit, and you receive anygrowth in your funds tax-free if you usethem to pay for qualified medicalexpenses. Unlike a Flexible SpendingAccount (FSA), you can roll unspentfunds over year to year.

Medically Necessary: Most plans willcover only medically necessaryhealthcare services or supplies. Theseare needed to prevent, diagnose or treatan illness, injury, condition, disease or its

symptoms and that meet acceptedstandards of medicine.

Minimum Essential Coverage (MEC):The type of coverage an individual needsto have to meet the individualresponsibility requirement under theAffordable Care Act. This includes

individual market policies, job-basedcoverage, Medicare, Medicaid, CHIP,TRICARE and certain other coverage.

Open Enrollment Period: The period oftime during which qualified individualscan enroll in a plan in the Marketplace.For coverage starting in 2016, the openenrollment period is November 1,2015January 31, 2016. Individuals mayalso qualify for special enrollment periodsif they experience certain life events.

Out-of-Pocket Costs: Medical careexpenses that your insurance does notreimburse. Out-of-pocket costs includedeductibles, coinsurance andcopayments for covered services plus allcosts for uncovered services.

Pre-Existing Condition ExclusionPeriod: The Affordable Care Act prohibitsplans from turning you down or chargingyou more for a pre-existing medical

condition. The prohibition on pre-existingcoverage exclusions does not apply tograndfathered health plans. Agrandfathered plan could limit coveragefor pre-existing conditions or not pay forcare related to your pre-existing conditionfor a certain time period.

Rider: A rider is an amendment to aninsurance policy. Some riders will addcoverage (for example, if you buy amaternity rider to add coverage forpregnancy to your policy).

UCR (Usual, Customary, andReasonable): The amount providers in ageographic area usually charge for thesame or similar medical services.Insurers sometimes use the UCR amountto determine the allowed amount.

Whether you have group or individualcoverage, we can help you read yourpolicy to see what it covers. Manyemployer plans are covering less thanthey used to. If your plan has significantcoverage gaps, we can suggestsupplemental coverages.

12 Builders Outlook 2015 issue 7

Hello everyone I hope your summer

is going good for everyone. This is my

favorite time of the year because there

is so much to do like vacation, fishing,

camping, swimming, BOWLING. Yes,

Bowling! The EPAB will be having its

annual Bowling outing Wednesday

August 12th starting at 12 NOON. This

years event will be held at Bowl El

Paso 11144 Pellicano in east El Paso

cost of a four person team is $100.00

which includes lunch. We will bowl for

at least two hours and have a blast

with our fellow members.

Next on our list is the ever so

popular Speed Networking. This event

has become so popular that we sell it

out in less than two weeks. For those

of you that have not participated I

highly recommend it. There will be

twenty builders that have five minutes

to visit with twenty vendors. This event

will be in held in September and for

sign up information please call Margret

at the association office 778-5387.

Have a safe and fun summer!

Sam ShallenbergerMorrison Supply

Associates Council

Expert Advice

Joe BernalEmployees Benefits of El Paso

execuTive oFFicerSedgarmontiel,President

Palo Verde Homes

carlosvillalobos,vicePresident

Pointe Homes

Donrassette,Secretary/Treasurer

Rassette Homes

SamShallenberger,Associateschair

Morrison Supply

FrankTorres,immediatePastPresident

GMf Homes

rayAdauto,executivevicePresident

Executive Vice President

JayKerr-Attorneyofrecord

Firth, Johnston, Bunn & Kerr

couNciL/commiTTeecHAirSAssociatescouncil

Sam Shallenberger

BuildPac

Randy Bowling

Landusecouncil

Linda Troncoso

YoungDesignerAward

John Chaney

remodelerscouncil

Rudy Guel

membershipretentiion

Patrick Tuttle

Financecommittee

Kathy Carrillo

Henry Tinajero

ADviSorYToTHeBoArDJay Kerr, Firth, Johnston, Bunn & Kerr

James Martinez, Law Office of James Martinez

BoArDoFDirecTorSAntonio Cervantes, BIC Homes

Bret Thompson, foxworth Galbraith Lumber

Bud foster, Southwest Land Development Servises

Dan Ruth, Millienium Homes

Henry Tinajero, West Star Bank

Joe Bernal, Employee Benefits Of El Paso

John Chaney, Passage Supply

John Dorney, Dorney Security

Kathy Carrillo, Pioneer Bank

Kathy Parry, Hunt Companies

Leti Navarette, Custom Dream Homes

Linda Troncoso, TRE & Associates

Robert Najera, Joseph Homes

Walter Lujan, Dawco Builders

2014BuildermemberofTheYear

FrankTorres

GMf Homes

2014PatcoxAward

BretThompson

foxworth Galbraith Lumber

2014AssociatedofTheYear

JoeBernal

Employee Benefits Of El Paso

2014JohnShatzmanAward

Cindy Bilbe, Stewart Title

HonoraryLifemembers

Mark Dyer

Wayne Grinnell

Don Henderson

Chester Lovelady

Cliff C. Anthes

Anna Gill

Brad Roe

Rudy Guel

E H Baeza

PastPresidents

committedtoServe

ePABmissionStatement:

The El Paso Association of Builders is a

federated professional organization representing

the home building industry, committed to

enhancing the quality of life in our community by

providing affordable homes of excellence and

value.

The El Paso Association of Builders is a

501C(6) trade organization.

2015 Builders Outlook

is published and distributed for the

El Paso Association of Builders

by Ted Escobedo, Snappy Publishing

ted@snappypublishing.com

El Paso Texas 915-820-2800

6046 Surety Dr. El Paso, TX 79905

915-778-5387 Fax: 915-772-3038

Greg Bowling

Kelly Sorenson

Mark Dyer

Mike Santamaria

John Cullers

Randy Bowling

Doug Schwartz

Robert Baeza

Bobby Bowling, IV

Rudy Guel

Anna Gil

Bradley Roe

Bob Bowling, III

Edmundo Dena

Hershel Stringfield

Pat Woods

TABSTATeDirecTorSRandy Bowling

Greg Bowling

Sam Shallenberger

NATioNALDirecTorSBobby Bowling IV.

Demetrio Jimenez

NATioNALASSociATioNoF

HomeBuiLDerS

(800) 368-5242

TexASASSociATioNoF

BuiLDerS

(800)252-3625

www.elpasobuilders.com www.epbuilders.org

Builders utlook

For All Your Electrical NeedsResidential Specialists

Tract Homes Custom Homes

915-208-9313

602-708-7560

Total Customer

Satisfaction

132015 Issue 7 Builders Outlook

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