The Next Best Thing

Makers of lighting and surfaces are meeting the demand for value-priced alternative products.

Premium-finish laminate countertops from Formica — such as the Honed finish in Himalayan Slate — mimic the look of real stone, rock or pebbles. The premium-finish laminates are among the company’s best-selling products.

As home builders look for ways to lower their expenses, manufacturers of lighting and countertops are doing their part by offering a variety of products to suit multiple price points.

One example is Formica. “Builders are really tightening their belts,” says Jim Wielinga, residential market segment manager for Cincinnati-based Formica Corp. “Today, more home builders are considering solid surfacing and premium laminate products [as an alternative to granite] than they were 12 months ago.”

To help home builders choose the right countertops for their homes, Formica introduced a national builder merchandising program, At Home with Formica, which offers laminate, solid surfacing and natural quartz countertop products. Rather than grouping products by material, the At Home program bundles them by color. Wielinga says that this helps builders accommodate different budgets: If a home buyer likes a certain color of granite but can't afford it, he or she can choose a similar color in laminate, solid surface or quartz countertops.

Wielinga says the choices include countertop products that mimic more-expensive, natural materials. One of these, Formica’s premium-finish line (branded as Etchings, Honed, Riverwash and Sparkle), includes the company’s most popular countertop materials.

Lighting

Lighting manufacturers have also developed products that’ll help builders reduce their budgets with minimal sacrifice of style. "We’ve developed a complete product line that includes fixtures in every price range," says Jeff Dross, product manager at Kichler Lighting, adding that Kichler offers about 4,000 different lighting fixtures.

Of course, no home builder wants to offer that many fixtures. Dross says his company realizes builders need help choosing the right lighting packages for their homes, especially when they need to pare costs. Kichler created a catalog targeted to home builders called Builder Plus. The catalog is designed to make it easy to find lighting fixtures that fit particular design styles.

Dross says that the cost of a lighting package on the complexity of the design, including the kind of glass used in the fixtures and the finish and shape of the metal portions. For example, a light fixture with a simple blown piece of glass, a straight metal tube and a single layer of finish is less expensive than a light fixture with a very complex glass element, curved metal and multiple layers of finish.

Dross recommends that home builders and homeowners invest the bulk of their lighting budgets in public spaces. “That's where you want to put your best foot forward,” he says. For example, the lights at the front door, in the foyer, dining room, living room and guest bath should get nicer light fixtures. Other rooms, like the utility room, bedrooms and game rooms, can have more-functional lighting. “If you have to make sacrifices, make them in areas that aren’t in the public view,” he says.

In December we asked you "To what degree are you turning to luxurious touches to differentiate your homes in the current market?".

56% answered "Increase moderately" as the number one choice.
Results are:

Increase moderately
No Change
Increase Significantly
Decrease Significantly
Decrease Slightly

Thank you for participating in our online poll.


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