Year in Review: 2025

2025 wasn’t a boom year for the residential construction industry.

In most regions, sales were slower. Decisions dragged. Margins were harder to hold. The external conditions didn’t favour growth, and for many builders, it felt like more of the same.

But behind the scenes, something important shifted.

This was the year professional builders stopped waiting for conditions to improve and started building businesses they could rely on, regardless of what the market was doing.

Instead of chasing more work, they fixed pricing. Instead of firefighting problems, they built systems. Instead of wearing every hat, they started leading.

And at APB, our role was to support that shift. Not with surface-level tactics, but with real tools, clear training, and a community of builders who wanted to run better businesses together.

What Builders Were Dealing With

The trends looked different in each market, but the pattern was clear.

The builders who grew weren’t just better at marketing or smarter with money. They made deliberate moves to simplify, structure, and take ownership of their operations.

Here’s what we saw across the regions:

Australia

The market didn’t crash, but it certainly didn’t flow. Clients took longer to commit. Build durations stretched. Profitability slipped. Builders who hadn’t nailed their sales process or who relied on momentum felt it first. Those who refined client qualification and controlled the sales conversation had a very different year.

New Zealand

The market bottomed out around mid-year. But for disciplined builders with lean operations and consistent marketing, this was a chance to gain ground. While others waited, they stayed visible and profitable.

United States

Price pressure dominated. With limited bank support and clients shopping on cost, builders without a strong value proposition were forced into unprofitable jobs. But those with financial control, process clarity, and strong positioning were able to say no and that’s where the wins came from.

Canada

Renovations became a prominent revenue stream, but profit didn’t follow everyone. Builders trying to scale with volume burned out or broke even. The ones who had clear pricing, tight scopes, and reliable systems were the ones who had the best years.

The common denominator?

Growth didn’t come from doing more. It came from doing it properly.

APB Brain: Smarter Support, When You Need It

In early 2025, we launched APB Brain, a new digital AI assistant inside the members portal, trained on our entire knowledge base.

It was designed to help builders get practical answers quickly, without trawling through course content or waiting for replies.

Since launch, it’s answered 3,739 questions, with an average of 3.4 follow-ups per session. Topics ranged from WIP accounting to builder marketing and sales objections, helping builders make better decisions, faster.

But the real value came from clarity. Builders used it to pressure-test ideas, fill gaps in knowledge, and move forward with confidence.

Action Plans: Monthly Training with Tools That Actually Get Used

Throughout 2025, we released 12 new Action Plans, each one focused on solving a specific problem inside a residential building company.

If you’re not familiar, Action Plans are monthly video training modules we produce exclusively for APB members. Each one includes:

Professionally produced videos shot in a studio
Downloadable checklists, templates, and tools
Step-by-step instructions for implementation

Here are the training courses we released this year:

In the second half of the year, we took it a step further by embedding AI assistant tools into new Action Plans. This allows builders to interact with a built-in assistant that helps them implement the training, rather than just consume it.

It meant faster application, fewer bottlenecks, and more confident delegation.

Builders Profit Accelerator: A Fast Track to Real Momentum

One of the biggest challenges we hear from new members is this:

“I just don’t know where to start.”

Others tell us they joined with good intentions, but between site visits and client demands, the weeks slipped by without any real progress.

That’s why we launched the Builders Profit Accelerator (BPA) in 2025.

It’s a four-week intensive coaching experience designed to solve those early hurdles. Builders work in small groups with APB Executive Business Coaches, and are taken through the core trainings from our membership, covering strategy, financial management, sales & marketing, and construction slot planning.

By the end of the four weeks, builders have a clear foundation to build from and the momentum to keep going.

This year, 246 companies completed the BPA.

The State of Residential Construction Industry (SORCI): Now With Interactive Data

If you’re not familiar with SORCI, it’s our annual benchmark report - The State of Residential Construction Industry - based on survey data collected from thousands of builders around the world.

In 2025, we:

Published the 5th edition of the report
Launched the first-ever SORCI microsite, allowing builders to explore trends, pricing data, and performance benchmarks in an interactive format
Conducted the 6th global SORCI survey, bringing total responses to 8,462 builders

Looking ahead, the 2026 edition (launching in February) will include our first round of AI-driven trend analysis, helping builders spot patterns faster and uncover blind spots, particularly in areas like financial literacy, marketing ROI, and team accountability.

APB Rewards: Reinvesting in Builder Growth

Builders don’t just join APB for coaching. They also get access to APB Rewards, an exclusive rebate arrangement we’ve established with more than 130 trusted partners.

These partners provide software and services builders already use, from project management tools to accounting platforms.

We negotiate exclusive cash rebates for our members. So when builders use those services, they get money back. Simple as that.

By the end of 2025, we’d paid out over $1,021,127 in cumulative rebates. Real dollars back into building companies.

Events & Global Builder Community

We hosted 14 events across Australia, New Zealand, the US, and Canada.

Two standouts defined the calendar:

Annual Retreat – Mexico

This multi-day retreat brought together high-performing builders and their partners for leadership development, personal reflection, and long-term planning. A break from the daily grind, in a tropical setting.

APB Summit – Australia

Now in its third year, the APB Summit had its strongest attendance yet. Within a month of the event finishing, 66% of attendees had rebooked for the 2026 event. At this price point, anything above 30% is exceptional. Crossing 60% puts the event in world-class territory.

We also upped our involvement at the International Builders Show (IBS) in Las Vegas, attending the world’s largest residential construction expo and running live interviews from our own APB podcast stage, where we spoke with builders, coaches, and industry partners in real time.

Builder Stories, Reviews & Industry Credibility

We released five professionally produced case studies, including:

We also saw our Google reviews increase by over 40%, while maintaining a 4.9-star average.

And our Net Promoter Score (NPS), a global measure of client satisfaction, rose to 69, the highest it’s been in four years. An NPS above 60 is considered exceptional in any industry.

Contribution & Culture

Every membership renewal at APB contributes to more than just business growth for the building company.

This year, we donated $40,000 to The 141 Project, helping fund the construction of over 16 homes for underprivileged families in communities like Guatemala.

And inside the APB team, we continued to build a culture we’re proud of, being named a Great Place to Work® for the fourth year in a row.

This isn’t just a badge. It’s based on independent employee surveys that assess clarity, leadership, communication, and fulfilment. The kind of culture we encourage builders to create in their own businesses.

Podcast, Social Reach & Community Growth

By the end of 2025:

APB had officially coached 11,736 residential building companies around the world. That number reflects not just scale, but staying power and a growing network of builders committed to building stronger businesses.
The Professional Builders Secrets Podcast passed 219k total listens, with a 26% increase in followers. We passed 200 episodes, with guest appearances from industry leaders across North America, Australia, and New Zealand.
Our online community grew to:
- 36k Facebook followers
- 21.4k Instagram followers
- 3.22k YouTube subscribers

Builders continue engaging with our content across all these platforms because they’re looking for practical, real-world advice they can take back to their businesses. That’s our goal with everything we create, bringing together builders, coaches, and experts to share perspectives that challenge and support.

Here's one of our most popular podcast episodes with American builder, Nick Schiffer, recorded live at IBS:

What 2025 Proved

This wasn’t a year of easy wins.

It was a year professional builders rolled up their sleeves and made the foundational changes they’d been putting off.

They clarified pricing. Built systems. Qualified leads properly. And stepped back to build businesses they could trust.

And while the market stayed messy, those builders didn’t just survive, they made real progress.

At APB, our role was to give builders the tools, support, and guidance to take the right steps at the right time.

And that’s exactly what we’ll keep doing in 2026.

Looking Ahead: 2026 SORCI Report Coming Soon

The 2026 State of Residential Construction Industry Report drops in February.

Whether you want to benchmark your numbers, understand how other builders are pricing, or spot new trends, it’s the most practical, data-driven report in the industry.

Pre-order now to get your copy first when it launches.