Findings from a Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) market study indicate built-in home technology is moving from being a luxury to a standard option. Growth of the home technology market held steady from 2011 to 2012, as built-in new home technology installations reached or exceeded 2008 levels, according to the “11th Annual State of the Builder Technology Market Study.”
The latest data provides “more evidence that the market for built-in home technologies is well on the road to recovery,” according to CEA’s press release.
Built-in broadband cable and dedicated home theater rooms are both on the rise in new homes. “Nearly all (92%) of new homes are equipped with broadband cable,” according to CEA, “up 36% from 2002.”
Nearly one in four new homes (23%) are outfitted with a home theater room as compared to one in ten in 2010.
Examining the variety of built-in home technology, CEA found that structured wiring continued to be the most common installed technology at 70%. Monitored security followed at 44%, with home theater pre-wire systems registering 27% among home builders surveyed.
Builders reported finding home technologies to be valuable, important marketing tools for new homes. Forty-nine percent of those surveyed reported finding it “much more or somewhat important to market these technologies today.”
Builders are also installing structured wiring and monitored security in remodeling projects, with small builders (42%) saying they “saw a greater portion of their revenue stemming from remodeling efforts in comparison to luxury home builders 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,” Chris Ely, CEA senior manager of industry analysis was quoted as saying.
Increasingly, builders are working with home technology specialists – “electricians, security installers, custom installers and electronic systems contractors” – to install home technology systems.
On the whole, satisfaction with such partnerships is high: 79% of respondents said they were satisfied with electrical contractors, 77% with security installers, 75% with system integration, and 66% with electronic system contractors.
Eighty percent of builders said price was the primary factor in choosing to work with particular home technology specialists. Reputation was cited as the primary factor by 75%, completeness of offerings by 73%, and prior experience by 71%.
