Houston Remodelers Ramp Up Member Engagement and See Results

NAHB Remodelers recently awarded the Greater Houston Builders Association (GHBA) Remodelers Council the Council Award for Demonstrating Remodeling Excellence (CADRE) for Council of the Year in the large council size category.

“We are so honored to win the NAHB Remodelers CADRE for Council of the Year in the large category this year,” said Will Cole from Divine Renovation, president of the GHBA Remodelers Council. “Our council has accomplished so many great things and grown significantly, and we’re excited to expand on this momentum into the future.”

Through innovative activities and programs, the GHBA Remodelers Council grew its membership by 30% in 2019. The growth was largely due to the implementation of several new initiatives such as additional online education programs, contract seminars and engaging charity projects.

“We’re pleased to award the GHBA Remodelers Council with the top CADRE this year,” Tom Ashley, Jr., CAPS, CGP, CGR, of Dunham Springs, La., and the 2020 NAHB Remodelers Chair. “Their wide range of accomplishments inspires us all on so many levels of the Federation to further strengthen our councils.”

Overall, the council primarily focused on fostering relationships with members. These efforts included installing a team of membership ambassadors, consistently calling new members to welcome them to the council encourage their participation in events, and calling lapsed members to remind them to renew their membership.

The 2019 GHBA Remodelers Council education chairs — Leslie King, CGR, GMB, CAPS and Sandra Crook with Greymark Construction Company — realized remodeler education must be made even more accessible to the entire membership. They set a goal of providing classes online through live classes and webinars. This allowed classes to be available at times that would not take valuable time away from business. After seeing engagement in the classes rise, the council hopes to increase and update the classes online every year.

In 2019, the GHBA Remodelers Council continued its history of giving back to the Houston area through its annual charity renovations. The council typically raises funds for these improvements by hosting an annual garage sale, and council members donate items to sell during the annual Home & Garden Show. In 2018, the council raised $26,000 to spend during the 2019 charity projects.

One of the council’s charity projects was the renovation of the Santa Maria Hostel, which has served the women and children of the Houston area since the 1950s. The GHBA also completed a remodeling charity project at Lydia’s Place, a transitional housing apartment complex for men with HIV who are recovering from drug addiction.