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Whats love got to do with it...tips for selling your home

Its not just a second hand emotion folks it’s the real deal which means when you go to sell your home you need to know how to emotionally grab your buyer (you know the people viewing the home and thinking about making it their own). Preserved value is everything and nothing helps build value more then emotional pull. So you wonder “How do I accomplish this?”

It’s easy:

#1 Make the right adjustments. This means when you are ready to sell your home think about what is worth updating and changing in your home to make it look better and be more valuable to a buyer. This could mean new carpet, new appliances or new (preferably neutral) paint. Think about the market value of your home and think about how you can increase the value without over pricing your home. Focus on kitchens and bathrooms.

#2 Clean it. Your home can not have any clutter. It needs to be tidy and clean. Bright and dust free. If you need to hire a cleaning person to freshen things up until it sells. I suggest getting a storage unit and start moving out the unnecessary things that clutter your rooms and closets.

#3 Stage it. A professionally staged home is proven to sell faster then a non-staged home. If you can’t afford a stager do your research and figure out the best way to set up each room to maximize its size and use.

#4 If there is one thing you can’t skimp out on when selling your home I would say it’s a REALTOR. A good realtor will advise you on how to stage, present, price right, update and list your home correctly. Your home will sit much less if you have a good Agent on your side. But buyer beware… research your Realtors success rate and make sure they are working for you not against you.

Now when a prospective buyer comes through your clean, nice smelling, clutter free and updated home they will feel at home. They will have an emotional feeling that this is it! And they will make an offer.

I hope this helps you at least a little bit when it comes to selling your old home. Now if you want further advise on how to find the right new home please feel free to contact me at knoble@campbellhomes.com and if you are in the Colorado Springs area feel free to stop into any of our communities and take a look. You can get more information about Campbell Homes at www.campbellhomes.com

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$8,000 Home Buyer Tax Credit at a Glance

• The tax credit is for first-time home buyers only.
• The tax credit does not have to be repaid.
• The tax credit is equal to 10 percent of the home’s purchase price up to a maximum of $8,000.
• The credit is available for homes purchased on or after January 1, 2009 and before December 1, 2009.
• Single taxpayers with incomes up to $75,000 and married couples with incomes up to $150,000 qualify for the full tax credit.

Learn More at:

http://www.federalhousingtaxcredit.com/2009/home2.html

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Q&A: Explaining Myth Versus Reality About Today’s Housing Market

Q: Given the uncertainty in the financial markets and economy, is this a good time to buy?

A: The answer is simple: Yes. It’s a good time to buy. Today’s market, coupled with a generous temporary tax credit for first-time home buyers and near-record low mortgage interest rates, provides an unprecedented window of opportunity for prospective home buyers. An outstanding selection is another reason that it’s a great time to buy. Available inventory is probably the best it will ever be, providing buyers with a great choice of homes. Many builders have inventory that is “move-in ready,” and they may offer upgrades or other incentives to seal the deal. Likewise, owners of existing homes who are looking to trade-up or relocate are ready to bargain. Add it all up and there may never be another buyer’s market as good as today’s.


Q: There doesn’t seem to be an end in sight to the housing slump. By the time the market hits bottom, won’t housing be down and out for the count?

A: Without trying to minimize the problems we have today, it’s important to keep your eye on the big picture. Over the long-term, the U.S. is definitely on a growth path. Our population will rise by about 35 million over the next 10 years. All of those people will need someplace to live. Consider these facts: America currently has about 105 million occupied housing units. About 70 million of those are owner-occupied. The other 35 million are rental units. Total equity (value of homes minus any mortgage debt) amounts to $8.5 trillion. More than one-third of all home owners own their home outright, with no mortgage debt. And more than 90 percent of those who have mortgages are making their payments on time every month.

Home values will ultimately bottom out and start edging back up. Once we turn the corner on the housing downturn, the longer term outlook is very promising.
As a long-term investment, homeownership remains a solid investment for individual households, with a track record that can compete with any other purchase in terms of its real benefits. The home building industry will need to construct more than 17 million new homes in the next decade to keep up with expected new household formations.
All of this bodes well for future house price appreciation


Q: Does the government action to rescue Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in September signal that the mortgage market is in a free fall? In other words, does the government takeover of these two mortgage finance giants mean that mortgage money has dried up?

A: The short answer to both questions is no. Quite the contrary, the federal takeover was initiated to avert any serious risk to the financial system and to keep money available for mortgages. It’s still business as usual for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. There is no credit crunch for qualified buyers taking out conventional loans. Remember, the housing law enacted this summer has permanently boosted the limit for these loans from $417,000 to $625,500. And this is where the bulk of all home loans are made. Credit-worthy home buyers should have no problems finding conventional, conforming mortgages at very attractive rates. In fact, today’s mortgage rates remain near historic lows, well below 6 percent for fixed-rate, 30-year loans.


Q: With the nation in a foreclosure crisis, why should I be looking for a new home?

A: While foreclosure rates have increased in the past year, the vast majority of American home owners are making their mortgage payments on time. More than 95 percent of prime borrowers – the bulk of the mortgage market – are up-to-date on their payments. Most foreclosures are concentrated in the once super-heated markets in California, Florida, Arizona and Nevada and the upper Midwest states of Michigan, Ohio, Minnesota and Illinois, which have been hit hard by job losses, plant closings and depressed local economies.

But again, we need to put this problem into perspective. As noted above, California and Florida are at the epicenter of this problem. California and Florida had about 54 percent and 41 percent of the prime and subprime ARM foreclosure starts in the third quarter of 2008, respectively, according to the latest foreclosure data from the Mortgage Bankers Association.

There’s no question that the foreclosure issue is a major problem that needs to be addressed. That is why we are encouraging lawmakers to include aggressive foreclosure relief measures in the economic stimulus package that the new Congress is expected to pass in January.

Q: In today’s housing environment, isn’t the smart move to keep waiting for prices to fall even further before venturing into the housing market?

A: The current housing price correction is helping to restore affordability. In many parts of the country where the housing boom was not as strong, price declines have been modest. The bottom line for most existing home owners is that their homes will be worth significantly more than they paid for them once the market begins to recover – a process that is expected to begin in 2009. The repercussion for prospective buyers is that the market has provided some breathing room from the sky-high prices prevailing between 2003 and 2006. And those who try to “time the market” in hopes of buying at the trough are likely to lose out. Here’s why. Just as no one can accurately predict the peaks and valleys of the stock market, the same holds true for housing. Fence-sitters waiting for the absolute best deal could end up literally waiting for years, and most likely their guess on market timing would be wrong. Meanwhile, those who buy now will have a home they can call their own and reap the long-term gains of home price appreciation.

Q: It seems that home prices will just keep going lower and never recover. What’s to stop this from happening?

A: It is a virtual given that over time home values will stabilize and then edge upward with the next recovery. To argue that home values will continue to decline and will never recover, somebody has to make a convincing argument that it will cost less to build a new home five years from now than it does today. That’s not going to happen.

Despite today’s housing slowdown, the price of most building materials used in home construction continue to go up due to worldwide demand and upward pressure on commodity prices generally. Also, over time labor costs are expected to rise. Look at anticipated population and household growth; consider the increasing scarcity of available land in metro markets where jobs are located and where people want to live. And the cost of getting land entitled will continue to go up because of more and more restrictions and fees being added by local governments. As inventories wind down, demand will rise and so will prices. Over time, all these factors will help drive up the cost of housing.


Q: The S&P/Case-Shiller monthly home price index showed that home prices declined an average of 17.4 percent in the nation’s 20 largest markets between September 2007 and September 2008. Does this mean that home prices in these markets -- and nationwide -- are in a major tailspin?

A: Different economic and job-market conditions directly affect demand for new and existing homes in every market Part of the problem is due to an influx of speculators in some large markets who helped drive prices up to unsustainable levels. For example, all the markets that posted the largest average decline in home prices during the past year – Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami, Phoenix, San Diego, San Francisco and Tampa – still have appreciated in value by at least 40 percent since January 2000, according to the latest S&P/Case-Shiller home price statistics. Four of these markets – San Diego, Tampa, Miami and Los Angeles – were up between 64 and 85 percent over this period.

It makes sense that the most super-heated housing markets in California, Nevada, Arizona and Florida are now experiencing the most serious market corrections. Areas in the Midwest are also undergoing price corrections due to stagnant economic conditions. For the rest of the country, however, the price adjustments have been relatively modest.
Though housing is a cyclical business, experience shows that over time, home prices will stabilize and then move upward with the next recovery.

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Time is of the essence

Consumers should be shouting off the rooftops about the fantastic deals they are being offered in both housing and mortgage rates. Mortgage rates have dropped to the lowest level since the 1970s. Housing prices are the lowest they have been in years, affordability is available and offered. So why are so many consumer waiting? I believe many consumers are waiting to see what will happen. They want the best deal possible so they are on the fence waiting for rates to drop even lower and home deals to get even better. But sadly they may be missing out on something that will not last much longer.

According to a recent poll done by local real estate industry professionals asking when they think the market will start to recover (meaning the sellers will once again get the upper hand) 25% said mid 2009, 25% said late 2009, and 37% said late 2010. If these predictions hold true we could see a shift in the next year towards stabilization of home prices and mortgage rates. This means that sellers will no longer give away the firestorm deals and incentives they have in the past 2 years and it is likely that with this stabilization the Fed will bring the interest rates back to a normal level we have seen in recent years rather then the under 6% range we see now.

So like any other investment there is risk and in a market like this the risk is much lower for buyers then it is for sellers. The deals are out there but many consumers might have noticed that less and less builders are giving away their homes and re-sale sellers are taking their homes off the market until the prices stabilize. The time is now; buy now or you might loose money later.

Buyers are seeing that there are a lot of great resale deals or perhaps hearing about all the quick sale/ foreclosures that are out there. Yes quick sales are up meaning that the amount of distressed properties are up. Many people are struggling to make their house payments because of all the crazy loans they were put into are now adjusting. This is both bad and good. The bad news is we never want to see this many people struggling with their payment, this is bad for both them, the banks, and the community. However President Obama has pledged that between $50billion and $100billion will be used to help boost efforts in combating the increasing mortgage foreclosures. The good thing is that an increase in Foreclosed sales and closes in the area means the inventory will soon be going down. The idea is the more inventories we wash out the more stable the market will be.

There is a pent up demand for homes out there and anytime now consumers will realize that now is not only the time to buy but the BEST time to buy. So as the title of this blog suggest, time is of the essence. Buy now or soon or else you could miss out or find yourself purchasing your home with a higher interest rate and a higher price.

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For more information or for additional testimonials please email me at knoble@campbellhomes.com

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Foreclosure Talking Points

Foreclosure Talking Points

• The Mortgage Bankers Association’s latest survey (http://www.mbaa.org/NewsandMedia/PressCenter/66626.htm) shows that the percentage of loans in the foreclosure process increased from 2.75 percent in the second quarter to a record 2.97 percent in the third quarter of 2008.

• The media is sensationalizing these numbers and conveying the false impression that foreclosures are running rampant in every community across the nation.

• Certainly there is no question that rising foreclosure rates are a serious problem.

• But a close examination of the facts shows that many of these reports are grossly exaggerated.

• It’s important to note that the vast majority of American home owners – 93 percent -- are making their mortgage payments on time.

• Breaking down prime and subprime loans, more than 95 percent of prime borrowers – the bulk of the mortgage market -- are up-to-date on their payments.

• The problem is in the subprime market. Nationally, about 20 percent of subprime borrowers are behind on their mortgage payments.

• But it’s also important to remember that 37 percent of all single-family homes are owned debt-free – without any mortgage – and that home owners nationwide have built up $8.5 trillion in equity that provides a good cushion against any decline in values.

• Furthermore, housing is not a national market. All housing markets are local.

• For example, the Mortgage Bankers Association’s data show that most foreclosures are concentrated in the once super-heated markets in two states: California and Florida.

• These two states combined (California 54 percent and Florida 41 percent) have about 95 percent of all prime and subprime ARM foreclosure starts, respectively.

• And remember, prime and subprime ARMs comprise the highest share of loan foreclosures.


• Foreclosure actions began on 1.07 percent of all home loans in the third quarter, down one basis point from the previous quarter. Only nine states were above the national average: Nevada, Florida, Arizona, California, Michigan, Rhode Island, Illinois, Indiana and Ohio.

• The remaining 41 states plus the District of Columbia were below the national average.

• Still, the foreclosure problem is a major issue that needs to be addressed.

• The best way to do this is to halt the slide in home prices.

• The solution is to stimulate demand. Congress should make the recently implemented home buyer tax credit much bigger and better, and available to all purchasers.

• At the same time, it should enact a sizeable government buy down of home mortgage rates.

• Together these measures would ignite buyer demand, which would help stabilize home values, reduce foreclosures and get the housing market and economy back on the right track.

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ANSWERS TO COMMON HOME BUYING QUESTIONS

Q: Shouldn’t I wait until home prices go even lower to buy?

A: No. Just as no one can accurately predict the peaks and valleys of the stock market (name one person who sold their tech portfolio in April of 2000), the same holds true for housing. If you wait for what you think is the absolute best deal, you could end up waiting for years. All the market fundamentals show that now is a good time to buy – prices are down, interest rates near historically low levels, and there are lots of homes to choose from.

If you buy now, you will not only be in the driver’s seat during the buying process, you will also reap the gains of price appreciation. Remember, those who purchased homes in the early 1990s during the last big economic and housing downturn came out as big winners.

Q: Doesn’t it make sense to wait out the market until can I get the same price on my home that my neighbor got when he sold a year ago?

A: No. It’s always better to trade up in a buyer’s market. While the value of your house has fallen, the prices of higher-end homes have also dropped. Here’s an example:

Your neighbor sold for $300,000. Let’s say values in your area have dropped 10 percent, so you could get only $270,000 for your home today. You have your eye on a move-up home that previously sold for $500,000, but now is selling for $450,000. If you sold your home today for $270,000 and purchased the larger house for $450,000, the difference in price would be $180,000.

But if you waited to recoup the 10 percent value on your home and sold it at $300,000, chances are the move-up home would also increase in price 10 percent to $500,000. That’s a $200,000 price difference. So by selling today, you would actually save $20,000.

Q: Interest rates keep going down. Shouldn’t I wait until they go even lower before I buy a home?

A: Interest rates for 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages are currently around 6 percent and are extremely favorable for buyers. In fact, they are hovering near 30-year lows. But waiting to time the market is a dangerous game. Even those who follow the market for a living can’t figure out when interest rates will bottom out. If they could, they would all be multi-millionaires.

And home prices don’t necessarily move in unison with interest rates. So, if you decided to wait to purchase a home and the price dropped $10,000 from where it is today, you could still end up losing money. How? If interest rates were to move up by a half-a-point during this period, the savings on the reduced home price would be more than offset by the higher monthly payment you would be making over the life of the loan.

Q: I have $10,000 to invest. Should I put that money in the stock market or buy a home?

A: Purchasing a home is by far the best long-term investment. For example, say you use that $10,000 to purchase a $250,000 home, and the house appreciates a modest 3 percent during the first year. That means after one year, the house would be worth $257,500 – a gain of $7,500. By contrast, putting the same $10,000 in the stock market and posting a similar 5 percent gain would only net a $500 return on investment.

And don’t forget the tax incentives. In most instances, all of the mortgage interest and property taxes you pay in a given year can be fully deducted from your gross income to reduce your taxable income. These deductions can result in thousands of dollars of tax savings, especially in the early years of the mortgage when interest makes up most of the payment.

Q: I’m a first-time buyer and still can’t afford the type of home that I want. Is it best to wait, keep renting, and hope that prices will get even lower?

A: If you continue to wait, you may never be able to afford to get into the housing market. Even as home prices are currently moderating or falling, depending on where you live, rents continue to climb. When you buy a home, you are also purchasing price stability, knowing that you will pay the same monthly payment for the life of your 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage.

Once you become a home owner, you are able to take advantage of the tax deductions that homeownership offers, and you begin to build equity in your property.

With so many homes on the market to choose from, your best strategy may be to scale back expectations for your dream starter-home. After a few years, you can use those equity gains to sell your starter home and move into a bigger house. The sooner you make the jump from renter to home owner, the quicker you begin to create and build up wealth for your family.

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Interview with a top Realtor in Colorado Springs

There is a lot of negative media out there that talks about how bad the real estate market is. Is it as bad as they are saying?

The market is not bad at all. If someone on your weather channel told you it was going to be cold and rainy all across the USA today would you believe them? Of course not. It is the same for our economic situation. You cannot talk about the whole country. We are huge and different areas of the country have been affected differently than from other areas. We have been very blessed here in Colorado. We have had a slight correction to the market of approximately 3-5% depending on what area of town you are in. My little company of 40 agents sold over 30 million dollars in homes in the month of May. Does that sound like a bad market? I don’t think so.

What are the advantages of buying a home in a “buyers market” like we are seeing now?

It is a wonderful time to buy. There is a bountiful selection of homes both resell and new to choose from. Interest rates are staying right around 6% or less. This is an amazing interest rate. Sellers and Builders both are being creative and giving some wonderful incentives. I would encourage anyone, that this is a perfect time to take that step forward.


BJ you have a long history working in Real Estate. In your experience how long does a down market last and when do you think we will see a shift in the current real estate market?

We have down markets just about every 7 years. It usually takes over a year to reach its lowest level but bounces back quite quickly. This is what I see happening right now. The market is turning and going back up and FAST.


What is one of the number one things you see/hear families are looking for when buying a new or resale home?

What most families are looking for in a new home is a good location with good schools and a livable floor plan. Most of the families I work with are wanting more open floor plans, lots of windows for light, and a decent size yard but not too big. With the cost of watering and taking care of big yards, they are more of a disadvantage. Most families would prefer to live close to a park or community open space for the kids to throw the ball around.


What are some of the advantages of using a professional real estate agent like yourself?

Using a real estate agent is smart. It does not cost the buyer one extra penny to use an agent. The builder or seller pays for the buyer to have one. It is wonderful to have someone look out for your best interest. It is especially good to have one that has many years of experience and knows what to look out for. Buying a home is the biggest #1 investment you will make in your life. You need someone experienced and someone knowledgeable to help you with that important decision.

Are there any other insights you would like to add about the current real estate market or about buyer’s attitudes today?

Don’t believe everything you read or hear in the media. Unfortunately “bad” news sells and good news doesn’t. Would someone please explain that one to me? The last thing I would like to say is, we live in one of the most beautiful places in the entire world. Why not own a piece of it. You will never regret it.



BJ Burns has been practicing real estate in the Pikes Peak region for over 23 years. Through her dedication to serving her families BJ has built a reputation of integrity. BJ currently offices with The Platinum Group of Realtors. For more information about BJ Burns please visit her online at www.bjburnsteam.com or you can contact her at 719.536.4301.

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The Truth is Out About the Housing Market!

The media has been reporting for sometime that the housing market is bad and that now is not a good time to buy a new home. I beg to differ. With interest rates at an all time low and the supply of new homes starting to decline it’s only a matter of time when supply and demand take effect and prices will start to climb again. It’s a known fact that when demand is high and supply is low prices rise. Therefore NOW is the best time to purchase a new home since prices are reasonable and stable, and there is still enough supply of homes to suffice for the demand that we are starting to see. The following is a fantastic article from REALTY TIMES covering this very topic.

Columnist: 'Media Is Wrong About Housing Slump'

Realty Times feature article by Blanche Evans

Why buy a house now? You've been getting bad information. Here's why.
The financial press is worried that they might have gone too far - paralyzing the nation into recession by piling on housing. So they're finally beginning to question the indexes where they get their data, and whether the news is really as bad as it seems. Slowly but surely, headlines are changing from Don't Buy a Home Now to Is It Time To Buy?

We said it here first on Realty Times - that consumers aren't getting the full story. Indexes can be misleading because of the locations, prices, types of housing, and rates of increase they track.

In late April, Robert Shiller, founder of the Case-Shiller Index, announced that there was a good chance housing prices would fall further than the 30 percent drop during the Great Depression.

Shiller has plenty of reason to be negative - he makes money when people buy housing hedge funds, licensed with data obtained through his company Macromarkets LLC.
Now, finally, one brave journalist is writing that Case-Shiller is flawed.

In his story "Home-price data has its flaws," Chris Plummer of MarketWatch slammed both Shiller's Index and the Associated Press for being "grim reapers."
For the first time, S&P Index Committee Chairman David Blitzer "acknowledged his organization's overall and metro-market readings paint an incomplete picture."
No kidding. The index covers only 20 markets, heavily weighted to the most volatile metros in the nation.

Plummer also lampooned the AP for writing that "despite that index's limited seven-year history, home prices plunged by a record percentage at their fastest rate ever."
He also notes, "The glaring discrepancy in this case is that 17 of the 20 metro areas posted record annual declines, and yet 78 percent of the 330 metropolitan regions that the NAR tracks reported price increases ... "

Bravo, Plummer. But the rest of the financial press still has a long way to go.
When Shiller says home prices are going to fall 30 percent, not one reporter who covered the story asked this simple follow-up question: "Bob, during the worst part of the Great Depression, one in four people were out of work. Our unemployment rate is a little over 5 percent. So what's going to drive home prices that low?"
Instead, no one did even the minimum Wikipedia search to find out what conditions were really like 75 years ago.

What that means is not only are the indexes misleading - the reporting is worse.
Right now we have mortgage interest rates three points below historical norms. We have housing inventories five months greater than balanced markets. Combine that with unemployment that is a half percent lower than the recession of 2003, and you have excellent homebuying conditions.

Stop listening to the media. Go buy a home.

Copyright © 2008 RE/MAX International Inc. 5/6/08

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House Huggers!

Keeping with my recent theme of built green I would like to show you how Campbell Homes has done their part in helping the environment by building Energy Star and Built Green Colorado Homes. Last year (2007) Campbell Homes built 53 homes all of which were certified by Energy Star! This is equivalent to:

· Eliminating the emissions from 37.10 vehicles
· Saving 20,352 lbs of coal
· Planting 5.30 acres of trees
· Saving homeowners $23,691 on their utility bills

Because of their contribution to helping build better energy efficient and environmentally friendly homes Campbell Homes was recently awarded the
ENERGY STAR for Homes Leadership in Housing Award!

Campbell Homes is proud to be a house hugger!

For more information about how you can become a Campbell Homes’ House Hugger visit us online at www.campbellhomes.com or call Kelly Noble at 719-266-9780 or email her at knoble@campbellhomes.com

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below is a fantastic article about green building that I found in Newsweek:
http://www.newsweek.com/id/120128


Not Just for Tree Huggers
Despite the free fall in housing prices nationwide, green homes are still red hot.
Daniel McGinn
NEWSWEEK

Updated: 12:35 PM ET Mar 8, 2008
Rob Moody didn't set out to be a builder. After graduating from college with a biology major, he began work as an environmental-science teacher in Asheville, N.C. On weekends, though, he spent long hours fixing up the classic shingle-style home his family had owned for nearly a century. Then, after seven years in cinder-block classrooms, he decided to make a change. "My love for old houses fell together with my love for the environment," says Moody, 34, who launched The EcoBuilders to construct environmentally friendly houses. Today Moody's foremen drive pickup trucks that run on used grease from fast-food fryers. And whether he's building new homes or renovating old ones, he insulates them to the hilt, uses sustainable materials and recycles so much debris that he requires only the smallest Dumpsters. Clients love the approach. "We doubled production last year, and we'll probably double again this year," Moody says.
The predominant color in the building industry right now is red, not green. America's housing markets remain in free fall, as the foreclosure crisis continues and more homeowners discover their mortgage debt exceeds the value of their house. Last year the average home builder laid off a quarter of its employees; this year the industry estimates it will sell just 632,000 new homes, its lowest total since 1992. But amid this gloom, there's buzz about consumers' shifting demand toward "green homes"—and how builders with this expertise remain busy despite the bust. In a 2007 survey by the National Association of Home Builders, home buyers said they'd be willing to spend an additional $8,964 on a home if it could cut their utility bills. Throughout the industry, there's a sense that consumers have finally reached a tipping point. "It's taken almost as a fait accompli, that green building is where the market is headed," says Michelle Moore, senior vice president at the U.S. Green Building Council.
For all the professed consumer interest, though, the average home buyer knows little about green building. That's partly because it's a broad concept with several components. The most obvious attribute is energy efficiency. For some buyers, that means investing big money in fancy geothermal or solar technologies—but more often it simply means being diligent about using good insulation, efficient appliances, superior windows and designing the house to take advantage of the sun. Green houses also conserve water, often by using specialized plumbing fixtures. For some builders, going green also means limiting waste, sometimes by using "panelized," factory-built walls or recycling wood from older homes. Inside, green homes often feature sustainable materials, like countertops made from recycled glass.
For a public tired of stories about the latest health scare, green homes have another allure: they're often healthier. Since these homes are built more tightly than drafty older homes, many builders install systems to bring in—and filter—fresh air. Green builders typically use paints that are low in volatile organic compounds, and avoid the carpeting, adhesives and varnishes that often give new homes their distinctive smell—and that have been associated with health problems. When George and Dorrie Sieburg hired Moody to remodel their Asheville bungalow in 2005, this approach was a big selling point. "At the time, we were pregnant, and we wanted to build as green as we could to make sure it was safe for our child," says George, whose wife is expecting again.
As with many innovations, some of the biggest gains in efficiency come from using old-school materials that have been slow to catch on. Consider spray-on foam insulation, which fills and seals wall cavities better than the fiber glass used in most residential construction—but at twice the cost. As energy costs rise, however, more buyers are opting for it: sales of Icynene, the leading brand, grew 22 percent annually the past three years. When Jacob and Alecia Sessums added a master suite to their Asheville home, they opted for foam insulation, a multizone heating system and a superefficient tankless hot-water heater. As a result, their gas bill dropped from a high of $400 a month to $37. Says Alecia, 32: "For people in my generation, [going green] is the way you have to do it—there's not a choice."
For darker shades of green, homeowners typically take more-radical action. In Grapevine, Texas, the home Ross and Tami Bannister moved into last fall is so tight, "it's built kind of like an ice chest," says Ross, who marvels at how infrequently the heat kicks on even on the coldest days. While their house is filled with sustainable products, its most innovative functions involve water. Out back lies a 10,000-gallon tank that collects rainwater from their roof; the water is filtered and routed inside for household use. On the roof, solar panels heat their water. Ross says people are sometimes surprised to hear about the home's advanced technology, since it's hidden beneath the bones of a classic Texas farmhouse. "It wasn't like we built some sort of George Jetson-looking future house," Ross says. That's partly why their custom builder, Chris Miles of GreenCraft Builders, fields five calls a week from prospective buyers.
The biggest energy-savers can still require big investments. A photovoltaic solar system, which generates a home's electricity from the sun, can cost $40,000. Likewise, a geothermal system—which uses pipes to send water underground, where the heat stored by the earth's subsurface is converted into energy to heat and cool the home—has long been a budget buster. But as energy costs rise, the return on investment does, too. Last fall, when Shirey Contracting remodeled Sean and Lynn Dillon's home in North Bend, Wash., the couple spent $34,000 on a geothermal system. That's more than twice the cost of an ordinary heating and cooling system, but Sean figures it will pay for itself in six years. Along the way, they'll feel good about reducing their carbon footprint.
Builders are working hard to educate consumers about why such expenses can be worthwhile—and why a lot of green innovations can be done for relatively little money. New kinds of certifications will also help consumers understand the paybacks. In December, the U.S. Green Building Council began offering LEED certification (it stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) for homes; last month the National Association of Home Builders announced plans for its own green certification. Both use point systems that tally up a new home's earth-friendly attributes and award different levels of certification. In theory, a certified home will be easier to resell down the line, but green-building advocates also hope that the new yardsticks will make consumers pay more attention, the same way Consumer Reports and J.D. Power and Associates rankings became big influences on car shoppers a generation ago. Says home-building consultant Sara Lamia: "People will see how the house they're living in is costing them money, and it gives consumers a reason to buy a new home."
At times such chatter about how a shift toward green building might lift this moribund industry sounds like so much wishful thinking. So far most of the biggest builders are experimenting with only the most basic green innovations (like using Energy Star appliances); most of the greenest builders do only a tiny number of custom homes. "The smaller you are, the more your numbers might mislead you to thinking this is what matters," says Ivy Zelman, an industry researcher. Some environmentalists apparently believe builders are putting green labels on homes that aren't really environmentally friendly—an attitude that appears to have motivated arsonists who torched a neighborhood of newly built trophy homes outside Seattle last week, leaving signs saying BUILT GREEN? NOPE BLACK!
It's also apparent that some green innovations are used side by side with products that aren't so earth-friendly. At the International Builders Show in Orlando last month, the plumbing company Kohler showed off ecominded low-flow shower heads and bathroom faucets—but across its booth, it also displayed gigantic water-hogging showers and whirlpool tubs nearly large enough to hold residents of Sea World. Likewise, if you build a green home in the exurbs but still drive an hour to work, has your carbon footprint really decreased? These are questions Danielle and John Arnett have considered. Next month they'll break ground on a 4,600-square-foot home in Colleyville, Texas. They hope to include loads of green technologies—perhaps even solar panels and a wind turbine—but they're still building a house that's nearly twice the size of the average newly built U.S. home. They admit a smaller house would be greener, but in their neighborhood, where nearby homes range from 6,500 to 12,000 square feet, they say their new house will be downright cozy. "It sounds crazy … but it's really, really relative," says Danielle, who notes they reduced bedroom sizes in an attempt to downsize the design.
If there is a downside to this trend, it may be the growing number of green homeowners who'll brag about low utility bills the way golfers boast of low golf scores. But for builder Rob Moody, whatever motivates people to desire better-built homes, he's not complaining. "People know it's good for their pocketbook, they know it's good for the environment, and they like the badge," says Moody, who was in New Orleans last week working with ABC's "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" on an earth-friendly project. Green homes may not spark the building industry's recovery, but in a world whose energy problems aren't going away, they certainly can't hurt.


URL: http://www.newsweek.com/id/120128
© 2008

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