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One of the bright spots in the Treasure Valley housing market has been the influx of retirees. And why not? We have a temperate climate, great outdoor activities, amazing cultural opportunities, and a relatively low cost of living. If you think that’s just some local’s inflated opinion of his hometown, just click on this link:

CNN_Money_article

That’s right! CNN / Fortune / Money ranks Boise among the Top 25 Best Places to Retire. And we’re seeing that play out every week in SpurWing Greens where we have welcomed newly adopted Idahoans from states like Washington, Oregon, Arkansas, Pennsylvania, Texas, North Dakota and more.

In addition to the many great attributes our valley has to offer, SpurWing Greens residents appreciate the unique amenities that only this community can offer: open space, miles of walking paths, and a Lifestyle Membership to the Club at SpurWing including fine dining, a fully equipped fitness center, swimming pool and tennis center. Purchase a full membership and you have access to the picturesque SpurWing Golf Course. Quite simply, SpurWing Greens is the best community in one of the country’s best places to retire. You owe it to yourself to visit SpurWing Greens and see why we say it’s “at the Intersection of Exclusive + Accessible.”

Andrew Grove was one of the earliest employees at Intel and ultimately its driving force in attaining preeminence as one of the world’s most successful companies.  He is also widely credited with coining the motto, “Only the paranoid survive.”  In his book by the same title, Grove discusses the concept of strategic inflection points – which he describes as “a time in the life of a business when its fundamentals are about to change. That change can mean an opportunity to rise to new heights. But it may just as likely signal the beginning of the end.”

Grove goes on to say that, “Strategic inflection points can be caused by technological change but they are more than technological change. They can be caused by competitors but they are more than just competition. They are full-scale changes in the way business is conducted, so that simply adopting new technology or fighting the competition as you used to may be insufficient. They build up force so insidiously that you may have a hard time even putting a finger on what has changed, yet you know that something has. Let’s not mince words: A strategic inflection point can be deadly when unattended to. Companies that begin a decline as a result of its changes rarely recover their previous greatness.”

“But strategic inflection points do not always lead to disaster. When the way business is being conducted changes, it creates opportunities for players who are adept at operating in the new way. This can apply to newcomers or to incumbents, for whom a strategic inflection point may mean an opportunity for a new period of growth.”

Finally, Grove concludes, “You can be the subject of a strategic inflection point but you can also be the cause of one.”

At Brighton, we share Mr. Grove’s healthy dose of paranoia and more importantly his sense of power or capacity to shape the future and to bend our own curve in an upward trajectory at the strategic inflection point.  Great companies recognize inflection points and respond.  And, yes, they can even create them. Great companies invest in both their human and financial capital to ensure an upward trajectory.

The real estate industry is positioned at just such a generational, perhaps once-in-a-lifetime inflection point and Brighton is responding vigorously.  Here are just a few of the things we’re doing.

Building the Best Team in the Industry

Over the last year Brighton has been hiring – and we’re hiring some of the best in the industry.  Our business is growing and in order to service the increased demand and build an organization that will accommodate even greater future growth we needed to add some great talent.  Of course, we’re very excited about that.  For more information on Brighton’s new team members and organization click here.

Developing the Most Innovative Product Line

We know that you want a home designed for today’s lifestyle.  That home your parents raised you in was a great home to grow up in but probably not what you’d choose today.  In fact, we have a notion that you want something more up-to-date than what was available even 5 years ago.  For that very reason, Brighton isn’t building a single plan it built 5 years ago.  What’s more, over the next 4 months Brighton Homes will completely overhaul its product line, with refinements to 12 of our existing best sellers and the introduction of 24 completely new plans spanning several market profiles.  That’s about 2 plans a week so check the Brighton Homes website regularly to see the latest additions.  www.brightonhomes-idaho.com

Investing in Infrastructure:

Regular followers already know that Brighton invested heavily in new developments in 2010.  We started the year with two great projects in full stride, Paramount and Mill District at Harris Ranch.  Over the course of the year we added River Heights at Barber Valley, SpurWing Greens, and Tuscany – five great projects in the best locations in the valley. What you probably don’t know is that we’ve been every bit as active in developing our internal infrastructure, including the technology and processes that will enable us to provide our customers the best service possible.  Also on the horizon for 2011 is a new Brighton Homes Design Center located at our headquarters in Brighton Plaza.

Shaping the future requires vision and execution.  It’s hard but scintillating work.  Brighton is doing so by hiring the best team in the business and arming them with industry leading technology and practices.  We’re pairing the most innovative product with the best neighborhoods in the Treasure Valley.  We invite you to check us out and follow our progress.

Please see the attached press release for more details:  Brighton_Ldrshp_FINAL

It’s no secret that our country, our state, and our valley are experiencing unusually challenging economic times. Yet for Brighton Corporation, 2010 has been a year of growth and progress. Founded in 1968, Brighton Corporation has weathered a few economic downturns over four decades, including a very severe recession in the late 70’s and early 80’s. When I joined the company in 1990, my partner and founder, Tom Tomlinson, taught me a very valuable lesson by asking the simple and perhaps most overused question in the business: “What are the three keys to success in real estate?” Of course I answered as he expected, “Location, location, location.” “Wrong”, said Tom. “It’s location, timing and staying power.”

I have never forgotten those words and I attribute the success of Brighton Corporation and its affiliated companies to my partner’s sage counsel. When the economy is booming it can be easy to forget those fundamental precepts – and many did. When times are too good some pretty poor decisions and business practices can be covered up. But as Warren Buffett said a couple of years ago, “It’s only when the tide goes out that you learn who’s been swimming naked.” Today you can find a lot of distressed developments that are poorly located, poorly timed and overburdened with debt. Conversely, there are a few that stand the test of time and weather the economic storm.

Brighton is successfully navigating today’s challenging economy as it has always done, by focusing our investment and development activities in premium locations. The recent timely acquisition of properties such as SpurWing Greens and Tuscany are further testament of our philosophy. And finally, Brighton’s financial staying power gives us the ability to invest for the future of our company and our clients. These are important considerations when choosing your family’s next home or your company’s next headquarters.

David Turnbull
President