CEA’s 11th Annual ‘State of the Builder’ Study Finds Strong, Stable Market for Installed Home Technologies

Home Technology Trends Reinforce HGTV-CEA Smart Home 2013

ARLINGTON, Va.--()--The overall growth of the home technology market remained consistent from 2011 to 2012, demonstrating home technology has a strong, stable foothold, according to new findings in the 11th Annual State of the Builder Technology Market Study released today by the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA)®.

Technology installations in new homes reached or exceeded 2008 levels, providing more evidence that the market for built-in home technologies is well on the road to recovery. Structured wiring remains the most common installed technology (70 percent), followed by monitored security (44 percent) and home theater pre-wire systems (27 percent).

“These installed technology trends signify that some home technologies have made the transition from luxuries to standard options,” said Chris Ely, senior manager of industry analysis, CEA.

Home technologies have become valuable marketing tools for new homes. Builders say they continue to find that marketing these technologies is important; close to half of builders surveyed (49 percent) said they find it much more or somewhat more important to market these technologies today.

Builders increasingly work with home technology experts, including electricians, security installers, custom installers and electronic systems contractors, and satisfaction with these contractors is high. Builders reported that they were most satisfied with electrical (79 percent), security installer (77 percent), system integration (75 percent), and electronic system (66 percent) contractors. Across the market of builders, the primary factors driving builder decisions to work with installation service providers remain price (80 percent), reputation (75 percent), completeness of offerings (73 percent), and prior experience (71 percent).

Overall, builders report installing popular technologies like structured wiring and monitored security in remolding projects. Small builders (42 percent) saw a greater portion of their revenue stemming from remodeling efforts in comparison to luxury homebuilders and local builders.

“Small and custom builders typically install most key home technologies in comparison to national builders, which suggests that this is a competitive advantage for small and customer builders,” said Ely.

The study also finds that almost all (92 percent) new homes are equipped with broadband cable, up 36 percent from in 2002. With greater broadband access, the report notes that one in four newly built homes in 2012 (23 percent) have a dedicated home theater room as opposed to one in ten in 2010.

“The increase in dedicated theater rooms shows that more consumers are realizing the benefits of having these installed systems in their homes,” added Ely.

The 11th Annual State of the Builder Technology Market Study comes as CEA and HGTV announced this month that they have partnered to build the first ever high-tech home in Jacksonville Beach, Fla. Using CEA’s TechHome Rating System (THRS), HGTV built the Smart Home 2013 to meet the Gold TechHome Rating specifications for technology infrastructure. The Gold rating provides a whole-house network that distributes audio, video, data, telephone, television, home automation and security signals into multiple rooms.

The 11th Annual State of the Builder Technology Market Study (April 2013) was conducted between December 2012 and January 2013. It was designed and formulated by CEA Market Research, the most comprehensive source of sales data, forecasts, consumer research and historical trends for the consumer electronics industry. During the fielding of this study, CEA employed the services of The Home Innovation Research Labs (formerly the NAHB Research Center) to survey 1,000 U.S. homebuilders through the Annual Builder Practices Survey.

Please cite any information to the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA)®. The report is available free to CEA member companies at spmembers.CE.org. Non-members may purchase the report for $699 at the CEA Store.

About CEA:

The Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) is the preeminent trade association promoting growth in the $209 billion U.S. consumer electronics industry. More than 2,000 companies enjoy the benefits of CEA membership, including legislative advocacy, market research, technical training and education, industry promotion, standards development and the fostering of business and strategic relationships. CEA also owns and produces the International CES – The Global Stage for Innovation. All profits from CES are reinvested into CEA’s industry services. Find CEA online at www.CE.org, www.DeclareInnovation.com and through social media: https://www.facebook.com/#!/CEAfeed, http://twitter.com/ceafeed, http://blog.ce.org/.

UPCOMING EVENTS

  • CES on the Hill
    April 16, 2013, Washington, DC
  • Digital Patriots Dinner
    April 17, 2013, Washington, DC
  • Technology & Standards Spring Forum
    May 20-24, 2013, Denver, CO
  • CE Week
    June 24-28, 2013, New York, NY
  • 2013 CEA Industry Forum
    October 20-23, 2013, Los Angeles, CA
  • 17th Annual CEO Summit
    October 23-25, 2013, Rancho Palo Verdes, CA
  • 2014 International CES New York Press Preview
    November 12, 2013, New York, NY
  • 2014 International CES
    January 7-10, 2014, Las Vegas, NV

Contacts

Consumer Electronics Association (CEA)
Izzy Santa, 703-907-4358
isanta@CE.org
www.CE.org
or
Danielle Cassagnol, 703-907-5253
dcassagnol@CE.org

Release Summary

The overall growth of the home technology market remained consistent from 2011 to 2012, demonstrating home technology has a stable foothold, according to a new study released today by CEA.

Contacts

Consumer Electronics Association (CEA)
Izzy Santa, 703-907-4358
isanta@CE.org
www.CE.org
or
Danielle Cassagnol, 703-907-5253
dcassagnol@CE.org