A reader in the biz replies:

<blockquote?G-man:

[Your previous reader wrote:] “Don’t knock Habitat for Humanity. After previous hurricanes, many of the only homes still standing were from Habitat because the volunteers built them correctly. The volunteers actually cared about their work and followed directions. Professional builders often don’t take the same kind of care and the homes they build are much less sturdy and couldn’t withstand the storms. Thanks!”

Ok, I’ve finally stopped laughing enough to respond to this genius. Three points to correct this person’s “expert” opinions:

1) Today’s professional home builders build homes that withstand reasonable weather / natural disasters. They also pay attention to details, such as quality and durability. Most build quality homes because, if they didn’t, NOBODY WOULD PURCHASE THEIR HOMES. Builders who build shoddy homes go out of business quickly in the industry because builders get the majority of their business through word-of-mouth advertising. If you build a crappy home for someone, they’re going to tell everybody about how bad you are, and nobody’s going to ask you to build their American dream. See, the free market works!

2) If the homes that professional home builders construct are “much less sturdy,” then blame the city / county / state, because their regulations apparently aren’t working, and neither are their multitude of inspections (too bad the average consumer never has the chance to see just how many stringent inspections that localities across the country put homes through before they’re occupied). Of course, most jurisdictions don’t ask builders to build houses to withstand 160 MPH winds for 12 hours straight. Considering that ours is one of the most regulated industries on earth (why do you think it takes so long to build a house?), it’s safe to say that most homes built within the last 30 years are going to be around for a while, massive acts of God notwithstanding. Heck, I live in a house that’s been around for almost 50 years now.

3) Apparently your emailer didn’t bother to ask Habitat for Humanity where most of their volunteers for non-televised projects come from, or else he / she would’ve known that BUILDERS are the ones BUILDING these houses. Home builders give tremendously to these efforts not because they have to, but because it gives back to their community. Many home builders will team up with their local home builders’ associations to donate time, materials, labor, and entire homes to Habitat for Humanity. According to your emailers’ logic, those houses won’t stand up in a Category 4 hurricane. Call your local home builders’ association and ask them if they work with Habitat—chances are they do. If any HfH homes were to fall down, it would be those built by P-Diddy and Chris Jansing—two people who have absolutely no idea how to properly construct a home.

I am not speaking as a representative of the industry—I’m speaking as the son of a custom home builder who puts his heart and soul into every single home he builds because, like virtually every single home builder in this country, he realizes that he is building something bigger than a home—he’s building someone’s American dream.

I’m sorry if your emailer has had a difficult experience in the home building process and feels the need to vent their frustrations at America’s home builders. Once your emailer gets his / her foot out of their mouth (or other place down and to the back), maybe they’ll do a little research before they spout off about things which they know nothing about. Thanks for letting me set the record straight.