Pulte Homes ranks high with customers

Pulte Homes took top honors in the latest J.D. Power and Associates homebuilder customer satisfaction survey, released today. Pulte, including its Del Webb and DiVosta brands, ranked highest in customer satisfaction in 14 of the 25 largest U.S. home-building markets and received J.D. Power and Associates’ Platinum Award for Excellence in Customer Service.

The 2004 New-Home Builder Customer Satisfaction Study is based on responses from 64,502 buyers of newly built single-family homes who provided feedback after living in their homes from 4 to 18 months, on average.

The Platinum Award recognizes homebuilder corporations that are represented in most of the markets studied, achieve above-average scores for each corporate division, and have an average index score that exceeds the 90th percentile of the study average.

“Pulte Homes continues to be a standout among new-homebuilders, repeatedly pushing the benchmark for customer satisfaction in the markets they serve,” said Paula Sonkin, executive director of the real estate industries practice at J.D. Power and Associates. “This is particularly impressive, considering the tremendous amount of competition we’re seeing in the industry.”

Other builders ranking highest in multiple markets include Centex in three markets and Lennar Homes, including its Greystone Homes brand, in two.

The study measures customer satisfaction with new-homebuilders in 25 U.S. markets, including five new markets for 2004: Detroit; Ft. Myers-Naples, Fla.; Jacksonville, Fla.; San Diego (which was previously included in the Southern California market); and Seattle-Tacoma, Wash. Other markets included in the study are: Atlanta; Austin, Texas; Charlotte, N.C.; Chicago; Dallas-Ft. Worth; Denver-Colorado Springs; Houston; Las Vegas; Minneapolis; Orlando, Fla.; Palm Beach, Fla.; Philadelphia; Phoenix; Raleigh-Durham, N.C.; San Francisco Bay Area; Sacramento, Calif.; Southern California; Tampa Bay, Fla.; Tucson, Ariz.; and Washington, D.C.

Overall customer satisfaction continues to improve across the industry, increasing from 109 index points in 2003 to 112 in 2004. Satisfaction scores have increased in 18 of the 20 markets included in both the 2003 and 2004 studies, with the most notable increases seen in the Minneapolis, Raleigh/Durham, Las Vegas, Austin and Denver/Colorado Springs markets.

Las Vegas had the highest overall satisfaction index score, at 123, followed by Austin with 122, Phoenix with 119 and Dallas-Ft. Worth with 118. The lowest scores went to Jacksonville with 94, Philadelphia with 99, and Washington, D.C., with 101.

“The bar continues to be raised by builders committed to improving customer satisfaction, and the rewards come in the form of customers who are more likely to repurchase from the builder again, more likely to recommend the builder to others, and will likely tell more people about their positive experience,” Sonkin said. “In this kind of market, with builders increasingly focused on exceeding customer expectations, simply staying consistent will not allow builders to remain competitive.”

Headquartered in Westlake Village, Calif., J.D. Power and Associates is a global marketing information services firm operating in market research, forecasting, consulting, training and customer satisfaction. The firm’s quality and satisfaction measurements are based on responses from millions of consumers annually.

Atlanta

Ashton Woods ranks highest in customer satisfaction among 22 Atlanta-area homebuilders. Following Ashton Woods in the rankings are John Wieland, and Pulte and Venture in a tie. Overall satisfaction in Atlanta is up 3 index points over 2003.