Congratulations to Steve Allen of Oklahoma City who joins the OSHBA leadership ladder in 2017 as vice president/secretary. Allen was COHBA Builder of the Year last year and is a past president of that association. Continuing in the leadership is David Blackburn of Tulsa as vice president/treasurer and Dan Reeves of Norman as president in 2017. Kurt Dinnes of Oklahoma City will remain on the leadership team as immediate past president in January.
Also, Dinnes has served as state rep to NAHB for several years, and NAHB has selected him as national area chair for the next two years. The new state representative will be Tony Foust of Norman, who has served as a BuildPAC trustee at the NAHB level for several years.
Congrats to these home builders who are taking time out from their busy schedules to serve our organization, as they were voted in during the recent fall board meeting in Tulsa.
Also, the leadership ladder for the Associates Council is joined by Connie Stokes of Stillwater as secretary. David Sanders of Tulsa is vice chair and Steve Taylor will be immediate past president and Chris Evans of Oklahoma City becomes president next year. Vanessa Shadix of Oklahoma City remains as treasurer. Again, thank you to these people for serving.
2016 Oklahoma Housing Hall of Famers ( from left), Bob Thompson, Ken Klein, Charlie Gilmore, Bill Rhees, and Reese Wilmoth
Hall of Fame
There will be much more on this later but this year’s Oklahoma Housing Hall of Fame was announced. They are: Bob Thompson of Norman, Ken Klein, Charlie Gilmore and posthumously Bill Rhees, all of Tulsa, and the first associate named, Reese Wilmoth.
We are honored to have these men represent the organization as pinnacles of the industry.
The Oklahoma State Home Builders Association's Board of Directors voted in 2015 to begin an Oklahoma Housing Hall of Fame. The goal is to honor and celebrate the men and women who have made significant and lasting contributions to the housing industry and/or to the Oklahoma State Home Builders Association.
Those nominated and honored are not necessarily members of the Association but have been instrumental in providing a positive image of the housing industry in Oklahoma.
Summit report
Congratulations to all who made the Oklahoma Building Summit & Expo a success. Twenty-two exhibiting booths were sold, and this year produced a profit, which can be poured back into making next year an even bigger and better event. It is scheduled Sept. 27-28 at the Cox Convention Center, so mark your calendars.
Other news
On Nov. 10 at the Tulsa HBA offices, a new HUB insurance product will be presented called Emerge Diagnostics, which has been shown to save 25-40 percent on insurance costs for pains and strains
The tool objectively diagnoses and identifies the location, extent, nature and age of soft tissue injuries. This provides data which leads to lower claims costs, a lower experience modifier and improved treatment outcomes for your employees. If your company is experiencing increased costs due to soft tissue claims, this strategy can be extremely beneficial to your business.
Another savings tool for your company is NAHB rebate program. In Oklahoma, the average savings members have seen is $1,278.28, which pays for your membership fee! If you are a Certified Professional Builder member, you save 5 percent on your General Liability insurance, which is on average $250 per year on your Compsource program. In summary with other programs, you could save as much as $3,028 a year through your insurance and rebate programs. And, as a member, you have access to the online state contract.
From NAHB state rep
OSHBA was one of the first in the nation to achieve the goal of every local association signing the NAHB local charter affiliation agreement.
NAHB voted in a dues increase of $16, but a resolution is before the membership to postpone it for a year. It will come up for a vote at International Builders Show.
Also, legislation dealing with overtime limits has been delayed, due to NAHB lobby efforts.
Associates
Scholarships to several of our state’s votechs will pick back up next year, with $10,000 allotted from OSHBA and the Associates. Approximately $5,000 in proceeds from the annual Associates Golf Tourney will be donated to Rebuilding Together, which previously was known as Christmas in April and repairs indigent homes.
