Skip to main content

Posts

Showing posts from August, 2009

Green Home Construction

It is fairly common now to hear the term green home, especially when dealing with newly-constructed houses. While there is not enough space here to go into the details, this article is meant to be a summary of the topic. LEED for Homes LEED means Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design and it refers to residential properties that meet certain specific criteria relative to: (1) the site itself on which the building is built; (2) the location of the structure relative to shopping, schools, parks, and so forth (called linkages; (3) water efficiency (both in the structure and on the site); (4) energy and atmosphere; (5) awareness and education; (6) materials and resources (what the house is built of); and (7) indoor environmental quality. A Sustainable Site One example of a sustainable site is one, for example, that does not require the destruction of wetlands or removal of threatened or endangered native animal and/or plant species from their habitat(s). In other words, a sustainabl

Features of Eco Homes

With more and more people preferring to build homes that are completely in harmony with its surroundings, more and more suppliers of kit homes are also offering eco home designs that will suit owner builders from all parts of the country. But how exactly do you identify an eco-friendly kit home? Eco homes have passive solar system in which the houses are oriented to maximize the benefits derived from natural sunlight. This means that the sides of the house are made of glass or have large windows that will allow natural light to come flooding in. Most homes also have decks to provide shade during summer season. Another distinctive feature of eco homes is its passive ventilation system, in which air is piped under the flooring to provide warm air during winter and cools the interiors during summer. This means less energy load for conventional heating and cooling systems, leading to lower utility bills. Kit homes with eco-friendly designs are also well-insulated. The walls of this type of

Green Building Considerations For Prospective Homeowners

For prospective homeowners concerned about environmental sustainability, discovering the potential of green building concepts is essential before choosing a residence. This article describes how green building ideas are available in many choices typically made by home buyers. Your new home's design and location present you, the prospective homeowner, with many opportunities to go green. For example, homebuyers have choices when it comes to what builder to choose and what community or neighborhood in which to build. Other factors to consider are building material choices and designing homes for maximum energy efficiency. Choose a Home Design Look for a builder with a proven record of building with green concepts. This builder can offer existing home floor plans that include green principles. Alternatively, you can approach this problem by selecting an architect for a custom home plan or a green building home design. In this alternative, once you have a floor plan, you can shop for a

Green Terminology For Homes

Green terminology is used quite a bit these days in order to promote products and services as well as to sell homes. Understanding which terms are true green terminology words and phrases and which terms are simply greenwashing terms can go a long way in helping prospective home buyers in their search for the perfect "green" home. Green homes are energy efficient and make use of green materials in their quest to be environmentally friendly. They incorporate green flooring materials, solar energy, green building materials, energy-efficient windows, and energy-efficient products. Green flooring materials make use of eco-friendly products. They can include bamboo flooring, cork flooring, linoleum flooring, recycled carpeting, and eco-friendly wood flooring. Typically, more than one type of green flooring product can be used in the construction of a green home. Solar energy is typically provided through the inclusion of solar panels that are often located on the roof of the home.

Studying the Effects of MDIA

There was a first law enacted in July 2008 before the Mortgage Disclosure Improvement Act or MDIA was created. The MDIA was a spin off of the first law and it came into effect on July 30, 2009. The Mortgage Disclosure Improvement Act was supposed to take effect not in July 2009 but in October 2009. The early implementation of the said law by the federal government came as a surprise to all professionals such as real estate agents, brokers, banks, lending institutions and borrowers as well. The dictates the closing time span with regards to the home loan. Before this act was implemented, the normal process of applying for a loan starts out when the commercial bank or other lending firms gives out a good faith estimate or a truth in lending to the borrower. This process is done after the borrower has filled up the standard application form. The good faith estimate only takes about three working days to be sent out by the bank to the borrower. The new law, MDIA, on the other hand, cancels

Growing Real Estate Fraud

An article in Forbes talked about a report released by the Federal Bureau of Investigation this week stating that real estate fraud cases were on the rise. They said reports of suspicious mortgage filings increased 36% during fiscal 2008 compared with 46,700 filings the year before, and that 2/3rds of all pending FBI mortgage fraud investigations last year involved more than $1 million at a clip, putting a rough estimate of the total at $1 billion. It's easy to understand why people would try to exploit a bad economy to help themselves, since that's what criminals do, but it's scary to see just how pervasive it is. Just this week, there were four instances in four different states confirming what the FBI stated. In North Carolina, banking regulators fined mortgage lender North American Real Estate Services Inc. $320,000 and revoked its state operating license after ruling the firm used shell companies and fictitious names to avoid state regulation. They also ordered the com

current realesate information

it is a general misconception that Realtors and multiple listing services (MLS) available online provide the most reliable and timely information about the current state of any local real estate market. While it is true that people in the profession have a good understanding of broad sales trends and price movements, they rely on outdated information that is based on past trends in sales of comparable properties in large market areas. However, what is true for the board (macro-level) housing market may not necessarily be true for the small (micro-level) market. And usually it is NOT. Factors that affect home prices, such as job and income growth, may differ substantially among different neighborhoods in a broader housing market, which would thus reflect in different ways on future demand and values of homes between the broader and the block-level markets. Therefore, Realtors and the Web-based MSLs, such as RealtorTrack.com and Zillow.com, which rely on trends in broad markets and use a

Tips For Finding a Good Realtor

If you already know your full situation by heart, if you already know what you wish for your home to have, and already know what it is you need, other people need to know, too. Locating the ideal realtor will aid you in improving your changes in receiving exactly what it is that you want, as well as locating great deals in today's market. If you are unsure of what you should be looking out for, here are some general guidelines in finding the ideal match for every single one of your needs. One very easy way to ensure that you are in touch with the ideal person is by doing some research. It is highly like that every realtor you come across will come with a reputation on their services and the things they can offer others. By going through online sources or asking others, you could begin looking for the ideal person and getting rid of potential realtor problems with those who simply aren't there to look out for what is best for you. It isn't just what other people are saying t

What Happened to the Real Estate in Rome?

Real estate in Rome has always been a lucrative business for many reasons including its political and economic role. Even though Rome position in the property market is somewhat less attractive than the position of Milan, mainly due to the higher concentration of international businesses and more flexible bureaucratic structure in the northern "capital," it still has the excellent opportunities to invest. The interest from the investors both international and local has remained very high over the last years and it has been driving the yields on all major types of properties down. When you search ViaCasa.it, it is possible to compare the volume of investments in Rome in 2005 with the volume in 2008. It is clear that the restricted supply of the qualitative property and the constant decline in yields has led to the decrease in the volume of the real estate transactions in Rome by more than 5% over the last years. Office property contributed the most to the total volume of trans

Why the Real Estate Market is Good?

You may have ventured into a lot of businesses out there for years but you haven't tasted the sweet success that you have been wanting. Many people have had the dream of achieving total financial freedom, but unlike them, you can be a big difference and make that dream turn into reality. You may have stumbled upon people making a buzz about how they have made money by investing their time and effort in the real estate industry. And this may be your chance to do the same. Is Real Estate Really A Good Investment, and How can you Truly Succeed in this Business? In the real estate industry, selling goes beyond conveying the value of the products and the services you offer to the prospects. It is about channeling the worth of doing business with you. Selling and finding motivated buyers are all about getting in touch with the buyers and becoming their choice. To be truly successful at this venture you need timing. Timing implies being the first or second person that the motivated buyers