Former Sun Valley Mayor David Wilson this weekend will be appointed president of the National Association of Home Builders, a Washington, D.C.-based trade association representing more than 220,000 members linked to the housing-construction industry.
Wilson is scheduled to take over the post Saturday, Jan. 15, during the NAHB's 2005 International Builders' Show in Orlando, Fla. He will replace outgoing NAHB President Bobby Rayburn, a builder from Mississippi.
"After two record breaking years for housing, we're anticipating another solid showing in 2005," Wilson said this week. "Even with interest rates on a gradual upward trend, as the economy improves we can expect resilient buyer demand heading forward.
"But we can't forget that millions of families still cannot afford to live in the communities where they work. We will therefore continue working to overcome the regulatory barriers that drive up the cost of housing development and homeownership."
Wilson noted that he plans to work closely with Congress and the Bush administration to ensure that government regulations "do not impede the housing-finance system that has helped generate the strongest U.S. homeownership (ratio) on record."
Wilson, a resident of Sun Valley, is the owner and president of Wilson Construction, based in Ketchum. He served as mayor of Sun Valley from January 2000 to January 2004.
On his way to becoming president, Wilson has been steadily climbing the ranks of the NAHB. He served as the organization's first vice president in 2004 and vice president/treasurer in 2003.
Wilson is slated to serve as NAHB president through the end of 2005, when the organization will continue a process of rotating its senior officers up its leadership ladder.
Rayburn is scheduled to remain on the NAHB leadership ladder in 2005, with a title of immediate past president. North Carolina resident David Pressly is expected to be named first vice president, putting him in line to succeed Wilson.
Wilson started in the housing-construction industry in 1978, in Seattle. He relocated to Sun Valley in 1982, eventually serving as president of the Building Contractors Association of the Wood River Valley. In addition, he has served as president of the Idaho Building Contractors Association and was named Idaho Home Builder of the Year in 1993.
Wilson Construction, which employs approximately 40 people, specializes in building custom houses and commercial structures.
The stated mission of the NAHB is to "enhance the climate" for establishing new housing across the nation. Chief among its goals is providing and expanding opportunities for people "to have safe, decent and affordable housing."
Approximately one-third of NAHB's 220,000 members are home builders or home-remodeling specialists. The remaining members work in fields closely related to the housing industry, such as mortgage financing and building design.
The NAHB has estimated that its members will construct about 80 percent of the more than 1.84 million new housing units projected to be built in 2005.
David Wilson
