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Customer Satisfaction

BU690-400 – Business Research Methods
“Customer Satisfaction”
Why it is Important

Assignment #14 – Term Project

Dorothy Shangle
5/3/2008



Statement of the Problem
In today’s competitive industry of new home construction, home builders are pushed to keep up a strict schedule to produce completed homes to homeowners. Top builders in the United States are not defined by the quality of work and materials a builder uses nor is it based on customer satisfaction; top builders in the industry are determined by the quantity of homes a builder builds each year.
In each new community, homeowners are given a choice of completed home models to choose from that the builder uses to showcase their work. However, the quality of work and materials used in these model homes are usually not the same as what the homeowners are receiving in their new homes. This research study will discover and evaluate homeowner satisfaction with their new homes and the areas in which they feel builders should concentrate more on.

Background of the Problem
People buy newly constructed homes because they feel new homes come with fewer headaches than older homes. This is not true. J.D. Power & Associates conducted a survey in September 2006 that showed a seven percent increase from previous years in construction-defect complaints from homeowners that purchased new homes between 2005 and 2006. (Hovanesian, 2007) Several internet websites are beginning to form, warning perspective buyers against home builders. With the rush of building over the past few years, the websites are growing and the complaints are getting bigger.
The complaints are mostly against the Big Builders throughout the United States; such as Pulte Homes, K. Hovnanian, or Ryan Homes. The smaller home builders tend to pay more attention detail and quality than quantity; and there inlays the problem. There are so many Big Builders competing against one another to build and sell the most homes in a year,...