This bump in the national housing market is creating a lot of fantastic opportunity for innovation. Consumers are driving the way as they let the Real Estate and Building industries how they want to shop, how they want to buy and what they want in terms of service and product. This is truly an amazing time in this space. Real Estate sales alone was a $55 Billion dollar industry in 2006 (I am guessing lower in 2007 LOL).

Working in a market that big that is in a critical stage is amazing, much like media and advertising adapting to change is not enough, creating change is critical. (Now you know how the name ChangingStreets.com came to be!)

Homebuilding is going in an amazing direction as well. I think FlatPak may be the coolest thing in a long time. The website is a little difficult so scroll over the numbers and letters, the pictures and info are amazing. They remind me of the old Mies Van der Rohe panel homes, great lines and simplicity. When I was a kid I had a freind who lived in one off Miller Road west of Swartz Creek and I know there is another off Dye Road just south of Beecher. I remember someone telling me you could take it apart with a screwdriver! I don't know if that is true, but it sounds cool!

Container homes and offices are also very interesting. Watch this video about the Berkley Shipyards .

There are also many other intersting innovations in the "Green Living" catagory, check out Inhabitat.com.

Really cool and fun stuff.