Production and Accounting Software for Home Builders

With the HST announcement by the Ontario government in March the great unknown was how this would affect our clients?

I have attended the various seminars and workshops put on by the OHBA and BILD hoping to get definite answers to all my questions as to how the HST will be applicable to Homebuilders.  At these sessions there have had experts from both the private and public sectors.

I did get some information but all the rules have not been defined by Canada Revenue Agency or the Ontario Finance department.

Things You Should Know about HST – HST will be implemented on July 1, 2010

According to the Ontario Ministry of Finance the HST will be revenue neutral.  It will reduce the amount of tax paid by Ontario businesses.  That prior to the announcement there was a 2% o 3% RST (Retail Sales Tax) component already factored into the Home Sales price.

To take the Ontario New Housing Rebate the house must be the Primary residence.  The same rules and conditions as the GST rebate.  If the sale is “grand- parented” then there is no Ontario New Housing Rebate.  The Ontario New Housing Rebate can be claimed by the Home Buyer or can be assigned to the Builder.

For the HST rebate calculation the existing GST rebate remains unchanged.  For the Provincial portion of the HST the rebate will apply to the first $400,000 of the purchase price.

With the “Grand-parented” sale the Home Buyer does not pay the HST only GST.  But the Builder is able to claim the Input Tax Credits on all costs paid after July 1, 2010 related to the house construction.  The Builder will pay 2% of the selling price times a factor based on percentage of completion on July 1, 2010.

One of the changes with the HST implementation that the Builder must be aware of is Disclosure.  What I mean by this is that the Builder must disclose if the Agreement of Purchase and Sale was signed between July 19, 2009 and June 30, 2009, whether the 8% Provincial component of the HST applies and if the purchase price is net of the New Housing Rebate.  If this disclosure is not made then the Purchase Price is deemed to include the 8% Provincial component of the HST.

A builder is considered a large business (annual sales above $10 million) then the PST component for the Energy (i.e. Gas, Electrical), Telecommunications (excludes internet services), Vehicles and  Food, Beverage & Entertainment  will be restricted from applying for the Input Tax Credit on the PST portion only.

Recently, Constellation HomeBuilder Systems announced the asset purchase of The Enterprise from move.com and we wanted to take a minute to introduce this offering to home builders and especially our current Constellation customers.  The following is a Q&A summary of the acquisition and our plans for helping home builders better manage their websites.

How can Constellation Web Solutions help make the most of my marketing dollar?

As we come out of the downturn, the methods and means we use to communicate will change and in many cases change dramatically. We will all need to be able to do more with less and the best way to accomplish this is by leveraging the power of the internet.  This was a diving force in our decision to add Constellation Web Solutions to the family of products at Constellation HomeBuilder Systems. We can help you extend your financial, construction, scheduling, sales office, marketing automation and other software offerings from Constellation to the web and your homebuyers through a customized web site from Constellation Web Solutions.

Utilizing homebuilder industry specific services from Constellation Web Solutions can reduce the costs of your online marketing presence. Traditional outreach sources (newspapers, billboards, mailers, and flyers) are more expensive and less effective today than in the past.  Builders and realtor agents will need to jump to the head of the line and use the power of applications developed specifically to market to the “new” buyers.

It can be difficult to market to the needs of a broad group or demographic.  How do you leverage technology to provide what buyers are looking for?

The days of generic information are over!  The prospects and buyers of homes have become used to technology providing them with the information they want in the way the want it.  The builder can not afford to lag behind in providing prospects and buyers the exact information they want.  This means the builder’s web presence will need to have intelligence to go from general to specific information and Constellation Web Solutions is here to help the builder accomplish this complex task.  The ultimate in specificity allows the prospect/buyer to select models and assess build options for their home from the website.  Our interactive floor plans change the drawings the prospect sees based on the specific options selected from the website.  Imagine the competitive advantage the builder has when the buyer compares their home built their way with the help of the builder’s website to other properties.

Mobile web sites provide immediate, location independent access to interested buyers on the iPhone, Blackberry and other handheld devices. We are living in a time when we all expect “information now” that is being driven by the latest in communication technology.  The builder must be prepared to again, communicate with the buyer/prospect using the method preferred by the buyer.  The adoption rate of texting and using handheld devices (apps) to transmit and gather information is staggering.  Any builder that is not conveying information or preparing to convey information on mobile devices is at risk.  The builders that adopt the technology the buyers use and expect, will recover from the downturn faster and more profitable than those that stick to “conventional” technologies.  Constellation Web Solutions has a proven track record in leading builders to the newer technology.

Talking/Texting/SMS yard-signs provide information when you are away from your models and sales office. This is all part of information now.  We live in a 24/7 era where buyers and even browsers see something and want more information.  The beauty of using an application that communicates (texting or talking) is that you are providing instant access to your information.  The greatest benefit is that you are identifying who is asking for the information and you immediately have a way to follow-up with them.  This completely changes the approach you can take in your sales operation while at the same time being responsive to the needs and wants of the buyer.  I would hate to face talking houses of competitors if mine just sat there.

How will my Company, communities, models and plans get the most on-line exposure?

By syndicating your new home web content to new home destination websites such as Move.com, Zillow.com or Trulia.com or your local newspaper web site as well as integrating your information with social networking avenues, blogs, and new media such as YouTube.com.  The old adage in real estate is location, location, location.  It is equally important when it comes to getting your message out.  Let us help you get your message out to these new sources.

How do I begin working with Constellation Web Solutions?

Builders interested in our web sites and related products should call our sales team at (888) 723-2222, or send a quick e-mail to sales@constellationhb.com.

We are your technology in the homebuilding business.  We know the industry and we know technology, can you afford not to work with us?

About Constellation Home Builder Systems

As the largest home building software company in the industry, Constellation HomeBuilder Systems has helped more than 2,100 builders manage their information technology costs with integrated software solutions to run their business from dirt to warranty. From planning to homeowner services, we have land development software, new home sales and marketing software, production, purchasing, scheduling, accounting, warranty, electronic homeowner manuals, vendor portal solutions, and invoice workflow solutions designed exclusively for the home building industry. Constellation’s product suite includes Constellation CRM (CFT), FAST, NEWSTAR, BuildSoft, Builder 360, and Constellation Web Solutions.

Media Inquiries

Cathy Kotsopoulos
ckotsopoulos@constellationhb.com

Toronto, Ontario, August 4, 2009 – Constellation Software Inc. (“Constellation”) (TSX: CSU) announced today that it has completed, through its wholly-owned subsidiary Constellation HomeBuilder Systems (“CHS”), the acquisition of certain assets and liabilities of the Enterprise and the Homebuilder Web Development Group (“The Enterprise”) from Move, Inc. (Nasdaq: MOVE), the leader in online real estate.

The Enterprise, based in Milwaukee, WI, develops custom Web sites for real estate brokerages and homebuilders.  Product offerings include web development, interative voice response (IVR/Hotline) systems, and television production solutions.

“We are pleased to add the The Enterprise to the CHS family of technology solutions,” commented Dexter Salna, President of CHS.  “We will continue to build on The Enterprise’s strong, well established customer base and flagship product line.”

About Constellation:

Constellation’s common shares are listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol “CSU”.  Constellation Software in an international provider of market leading software and services to a number of industries across both the public and private sectors.  Constellation acquires, manages and builds vertical market software businesses that provide mission-critical software solutions to address the specific needs of its customers in those industries.

About Move, Inc.:

Move, Inc. (NASDAQ:MOVE) is the leader in online real estate with 8.3 million(1) monthly visitors to its online network of websites.  Move, Inc. operates: Move.com, a leading destination for information on new homes and rental listings, moving, home and garden and home finance; REALTOR.com, the official Web site of the National Association of REALTORS; Moving.com; SeniorHousingNet.com; and Top Producer Systems.  Move, Inc. is based in Westlake Village, California.

For futher information, contact:

John Billowits
Chief Financial Officer, Constellation Software Inc.
(416) 861.2279
info@csisoftware.com
www.csisoftware.com

Constellation Builder Broadcast is a complete e-mail marketing solution, providing an economical, results-oriented solution for home builders of all sizes, whether you build 5 houses a year or 10,000.

Now, more than ever, it is critical to know as much about potential home buyers as possible. You would never send the same e-mail to a home buyer as you would to a real estate agent. Constellation Builder Broadcast offers affordable tools to send timely, meaningful communication to your prospects and customers that will help you get referrals to help increase sales.

Collecting and managing e-mail addresses is just the beginning. Beyond simply sending the e-mail messages, Constellation has prepared a best practices guide for e-mail marketing. This guide, along with Constellation Builder Broadcast will help you optimize your e-mail campaigns, and effortlessly keep your campaigns in compliance with junk e-mail regulations.

Some of the key benefits include:

Built-in best practices for e-mail marketing and campaign management, designed to increase prospect-to-customer conversion ratios.

Build strong, trusted relationships by staying in-touch with your prospects, ensure delivery of the messages you want them to read, and encourage them to make a purchase decision.

Measure e-mail marketing effectiveness with insightful reporting, tracking and analytics to determine content relevance, timeliness, frequency and overall performance of your e-mail marketing campaigns.

See how you can stand out from the competition with polished, professional, and highly relevant e-mail marketing campaigns.

Markham, ON, July 20, 2009 – Constellation HomeBuilder Systems, the largest provider of homebuilding software, is pleased to announce that Constellation is the winner of the 2009 Innovative Housing Technology Award for Constellation’s BuildSERV Ownership Guides under the Front Office: Sales & Marketing category.

The award program, owned by CE Pro, TecHome Builder and Electronic House magazines honors the most innovative products, builders and CE pros serving the homebuilding industry.

A panel of tech building industry experts and journalists evaluated the 2009 finalists and made the tough choices.  The winners represent best practices by CE pros, builders, home technology makers and IT innovators.

Visit www.techomebuilder.com for product information and slideshows of the winners and award finalists.

Constellation Sales was nominated as a finalist.

Markham, ON, June 29, 2009 – Constellation HomeBuilder Systems, the largest provider of homebuilding software, is pleased to announce that Constellation was named Constructech’s 50 Hottest for 2009.

Constructech 50 Hottest for 2009 is a listing of the most influential construction technology providers with a strong and ongoing market presence.  The Constructech editorial team considered various criteria which included having a strong product/service aimed at the construction industry, customer satisfaction and growth, as well as industry outreach and educational efforts.

“The Constructech 50 Hottest honors the hard work and dedication that these exceptional companies have shown in the construction space.” said Mike Carrozzo, chief editor of Constructech.  “Though ecomonic turmoil has neen prominent and the construction market has seen struggles, this year’s winners have still found success and are taking part in th emove toward improvement in the industry.”

About Constructech Magazine

As the only publication focused exclusively on the technology needs to the construction professional, Constructech magazine division of Speciality Publishing Co., Constructech advises 30,000 unique builders and contractors in all trades within the homebuilding market on the technology, services, and automated home technology that help improve business and increase margins.  With a specialized focused in the homebuilding space, Constructech uncovers the solutions that are shaping the way homes are built.

About Constellation HomeBuilder Systems

As the largest home building software company in the industry, Constellation HomeBuilder Systems has helped more than 2,100 builders manage their information technology costs with integrated software solutions to run their business from dirt to warranty.  From planning to homeowner services, we have land development software, new home sales and marketing software, production, purchasing, scheduling, accounting, warranty, electronic homeowner manuals, and vendor portal solutions designed exclusively for the home building industry.

Just a reminder that we will be at PCBC (Booth 1316 South Hall) next week with several new products and enhancements for home builders. We have had a great year developing award winning software products and helping builders do more with less.

Our sales, production, and accounting systems will help builders respond more quickly to prospects, work better with trades and suppliers, build homes on time with improved quality, and reduce ongoing homeowner warranty and service costs.

See you at the show.

ICI Homes CEO Mori Hosseini was interviewed by Jim Cramer on Mad Money to provide a private builder’s perspective on the current U.S. Housing Market and his experience in Florida. Confirming Constellation’s observation of recent home builder optimism, Mori reports a higher sales velocity with his company’s best April sales level since 2006.

ICI Homes CEO Mori Hosseini on Jim Cramer’s Mad Money – April 28th, 2009

(Mori appears close to the 3 minute mark)

Markham, ON (PRWEB) May 27, 2009 — Constellation HomeBuilder Systems, the largest provider of homebuilder accounting software, will be presenting several new software products at the 2009 PCBC, June 17-19, 2009, San Francisco, CA. Home builders are invited to see the latest homebuilding software technology to help builders control costs more effectively while preparing for normal home construction and sales levels.

As the largest homebuilding software provider, Constellation reported an increase in sales from smaller home builders between March and May of 2009. Unlike many other software providers in the homebuilding industry, Constellation is committed to supporting our customers, participating in industry events and supporting trade publications regardless of the current market conditions. Recently, home builder confidence has started to return as demonstrated by a strong commitment toward technology investment. As home builders prepare for improved market conditions, investing in technology ahead of growth can help delay staff increases with better control systems in place to ensure future profitability.

If you need better software to manage your home building business, visit us at the show to learn how the best builders are transforming their businesses and utilizing Constellation products. Don’t forget to ask about our PCBC 2009 show specials.

Constellation continues to demonstrate an unmatched commitment to invest in new technology and services for home builders of all sizes, whether you build 5 homes or 10,000 homes annually. In addition to the numerous enhancements in Constellation’s industry leading ERP product suite, NEWSTAR, FAST, BuildSoft, Builder 360, as well as Constellation CRM, and LandDev, we are introducing six, leading-edge products specifically designed to help home builders meet the challenges of today’s recovering market.

At PCBC, builders can see firsthand why Constellation’s industry commitment and product enhancement efforts continue to make our technology solutions the first choice for home builders seeking world-class software and services.

Please join us to see the latest new products at the Pacific Coast Builders Conference 2009, June 17-19, 2009, Moscone Center at Booth 1316 in the South Hall.

Constellation’s most recent new products include:

Website Sales Integration – WebLeads

Constellation WebLeads is an automated web-based lead qualification and prospect management tool for home builders. WebLeads allows you to quickly qualify, personally respond to, and narrow your focus on prospects that are ready to purchase. Never lose another lead and convert more prospects into homebuyers by immediately responding to new prospects’ online inquires by effectively qualifying and communicating in real-time.

NEWSTAR Enterprise Workflow Management Software

Constellation NEWSTAR Workflow Management is a web-based solution designed for all commercial, residential or condominium property managers with remote building locations and any locations outside head office. It delivers consistent, timely and accurate information to internal or external users for faster, automated and more efficient invoice status, approval and payment control.

Warranty and Homeowner Expectation Management: Driving Referral Sites

Constellation BuildSERV – Ownership Guides is a hosted web portal and e-mail service for the delivery of home care and warranty information to new home buyers. Multiple touch-point communication tools help you track responses and reinforce your warranty and customer service standards. Integrated lead referral programs offered during and after the warranty period will help you drive referral sales.

Constellation Extended Hosting

Constellation Extended Hosting offers homebuilders a cost-effective alternative to upfront hardware and software licensing costs. The NEWSTAR Enterprise and FAST homebuilding production and accounting systems, available in a stable, secure, scalable and supported environment, gives homebuilders instant online access from any location with Internet connectivity.

Constellation Promotional Marketing – Constellation Forms and 4-Color Printing

Constellation Forms is an easy, affordable and effective marketing solution for all home builders. No job is too small or too large. We specialize in creating high quality, four-color marketing materials that look amazing online and in print. We offer design and printing services for stock and custom printed promotional materials. Constellation will work with your marketing staff to translate and develop your concepts into exceptional promotional pieces designed specifically for any target audience. Produce powerful images that best represent your company and deliver the right message to your prospects, all while saving time and money.

Constellation Builder Broadcast – E-mail Marketing System

Constellation Builder Broadcast provides you with affordable e-mail campaign management tools tailored to your requirements to produce polished, professional and targeted e-mail campaigns and services. Measure the effectiveness, impact and overall results with detailed, accurate tracking, reporting and analytics to give you target audience feedback so you sell the right product to the right customer, and open doors to discover and explore new channel and market opportunities.

About Constellation HomeBuilder Systems

As the largest home building software company in the industry, Constellation HomeBuilder Systems has helped more than 2,100 builders manage their information technology costs with integrated software solutions to run their business from dirt to warranty. From planning to homeowner services, we have land development software, new home sales and marketing software, production, purchasing, scheduling, accounting, warranty, electronic homeowner manuals, and vendor portal solutions designed exclusively for the home building industry.

Media Inquiries:

Cathy Kotsopoulos
ckotsopoulos(at)constellationhb.com
(888) 723-2222

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Now that the housing boom is behind us and the entire industry is dealing with a new reality, managing warranty and service costs is very important. In this session, we’ll show you how many builders have reduced their warranty and service costs, and improved customer satisfaction and referrals with small investments in online homeowner manuals, maintenance guides, newsletters and service request portals.

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