Briefs: Zillow's Hottest Market for 2026, Registration Open for DOMOTEX asia/CHINAFLOOR

Jan 12, 2026

• Hartford, Conn., is expected to be the hottest housing market in 2026, according to Zillow’s annual hottest markets forecast. The No. 1 ranking is based on past and anticipated home price growth, 2025 Zillow market data and job growth. Hartford beat out Buffalo, N.Y., which topped the list in 2024 and 2025.

• Visitor registration is now open for DOMOTEX asia/CHINAFLOOR, the largest international flooring exhibition in Asia-Pacific. The event will be held at the Shanghai National Exhibition and Convention Center in China from May 27-29. Access is free to buyers of all types of flooring. Click here for more details.

• Makita is offering a free 18-volt LXT battery with the purchase of any two of the company’s cordless LXT bare tools. Click here for more details on the deal, which runs through Jan. 31.

Owner Damien Janaszek wants DOM's showroom and warehouse to be a place contractors feel comfortable stopping by and asking for help.

New Chicago-Area Distributor Aims to Support Wood Floor Community

June 10, 2026

Owner Damien Janaszek wants DOM's showroom and warehouse to be a place contractors feel comfortable stopping by and asking for help.

New Chicago-Area Distributor Aims to Support Wood Floor Community

Existing Home Sales Increase as More First-Time Buyers Enter Market

Zillow: Home Seller Activity Falls Year-Over-Year as Mortgage Rates Climb

WFB Briefs: Record Attendance at ChinaFloor, Special Somerset Sales Event, More

New Chicago-Area Distributor Aims to Support Wood Floor Community

A new Chicago-area flooring supplies distributor, DOM Flooring Supplies (Elk Grove Village, Ill.), hosted demonstration days at its store, May 20–21. The event marks one of many, as Owner Damien Janaszek says he plans to build a community and bolster education around the wood flooring industry.

Owner Damien Janaszek wants DOM's showroom and warehouse to be a place contractors feel comfortable stopping by and asking for help.

Existing Home Sales Increase as More First-Time Buyers Enter Market

Total existing home sales increased 3.2% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.17 million in May, the highest rate since December 2025 but still historically low, according to the National Association of Realtors and the National Association of Home Builders.

Zillow: Home Seller Activity Falls Year-Over-Year as Mortgage Rates Climb

May home sales rose 4.8% month-over-month to 341,929, but stood 2.9% lower than last year as new listings decreased 0.8% month-over-month and fell 4.1% year-over-year to 422,956, according to Zillow’s May market report.

WFB Briefs: Record Attendance at ChinaFloor, Special Somerset Sales Event, More

Domotex Asia/ChinaFloor 2026 trade show sets record attendance, Somerset Hardwood Flooring launches America 250 anniversary sale, and more.

Sika Showcases Flooring Solutions With New Campaign

Sika (Baar, Switzerland) announced the launch of its “Bring It On” campaign, meant to show flooring professionals the breadth of its installation solutions.

L.A. Train of Swiff-Train Dies at 86

Lee Allan “L.A.” Train of Swiff-Train Company passed away at the age of 86 on June 3.

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Residential Construction Employment Posts Small Gain for May

Construction industry employment rose by 17,000 jobs in May, as residential added 900 jobs and non-residential added 15,700, according to the National Association of Home Builders’ analysis of data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

World’s Timber Industry Meets to End Illegal Logging

The first multilateral workshop to end global illegal logging involved the entire timber industry and was led by the U.S. Justice Department in Libreville, Gabon, May 18–22, according to Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Adam Gustafson of the Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division and reported on by Wood Central.

Horizon Acquires Rochester, N.Y. Installers Warehouse

Horizon Forest Products (Raleigh, N.C.) acquired Rochester, N.Y.-based flooring distributor Installers Warehouse on June 1. The move supports the company’s ability to serve its Northeast customers, it said in a press release.

Older Homeowners Hanging on to Aging Homes

A majority of adults 65 and older (79%) are homeowners, and they own 34% of owner-occupied houses in the U.S., according to an analysis by the National Association of Home Builders.

Single-Family Construction Down Everywhere in Q1 2026

Elevated interest rates, rising material costs and labor shortages contributed to the decline of single-family homes constructed across all geographies in the first quarter of 2026, according to the National Association of Home Builders’ Home Building Geography Index data.

Construction Jobs Increase While Layoffs at Lowest Since 2022

The construction industry added 25,000 jobs in April, ending the month with 259,000 openings, up 52,000 from last year, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey.

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