Customer satisfaction with new-home builders has improved for a third consecutive year, and new-home quality has improved for a second consecutive year despite the stagnant U.S. housing market, according to a new study from the J.D. Power and Associates. The U.S. New-Home Builder Customer Satisfaction Study study, now in its 14th year, includes rankings for builders in 17 markets. According to the study, Shea Homes, headquartered in Walnut, Calif., and Standard Pacific Homes based in Irvine each rank highest in customer satisfaction in three markets. Los Angeles- based KB Home ranks highest in two markets. Overall customer satisfaction has improved for a third consecutive year, averaging 826 on a 1,000-point scale in 2010—the highest level since the inception of the study in 1997. Markets with the highest levels of overall satisfaction in 2010 include Phoenix, Las Vegas; Southern California; Orlando; and Sacramento. New-home quality has also increased notably to an average of 844 in 2010, reaching a record high. Home quality has improved from 2009 in 15 of the 17 markets. “The downturn of the housing market – along with intensified competition for a very limited pool of home buyers – has reinforced the importance of customer focus for new-home builders,” said Dale Haines, senior director of the real estate and construction industries practice at J.D. Power and Associates. “In this buyers’ market, builders that are attentive to customer needs and focus on relationship building stand the best chance of enduring through the market recovery. Many builders that were unable to maintain this focus consistently have had to exit the marketplace.”
Customer Satisfaction with New-Home Builders Improves
