Many of Houston's New Homes Will Be Wired for the Future

A number of Houston's home-building companies have signed agreements with ClearWorks.net to provide a high-tech infrastructure for new homes in the greater Houston area. The contracts ensure that many homes built by the companies will be pre-wired for future upgrades. More than 10 contracts have been signed already with six of the top 12 home builders in Houston.

Basic wiring costs $500, with the most advanced package priced at $2,000 per home, said a spokesman for ClearWorks.net. Homeowners decide what their preferences are and can specify exactly what they want their new home to include: high-speed Internet connections, digital telephone service with voice mail and caller ID, digital cable TV with no channel limitations, closed-circuit security capabilities, on-demand video and game rentals, or a community intranet.

By pre-wiring their homes, owners can experience a commercial-quality technology infrastructure similar to what they have at work. A Gartner Group report predicted that one-third of the U.S. work force will be working remotely at least one day a week by 2003.

The home builders already under contract are expected to complete more than 6,000 homes this year.