There was so much inspiring, progressive green building news this week! I Tweeted most of it and narrowed the choices down to these few as most helpful for homeowners.
> Just last week, I was talking about ceiling insulation, and I said: “There is no rule that says you can’t do more than what the building code says. Code is a required minimum. You are free to do more, and that’s what I did. There probably is a cut-off point, though, where what you put in doesn’t contribute anymore to energy loss, but I don’t know what that is.” Lo and behold, the DOE heard me and responded.
> Physical comfort drives me. I change my clothes four or five times a day to regulate my body temperature (this is a sensory issue, which I have passed down to my younger daughter). I am much like every dog I’ve had, moving to various parts of the house or yard to stay comfortable in all seasons. I should consider a courtyard home for natural heating and cooling.
> Does the average homeowner want to monitor her energy use? Smart Meters are for exactly that, but if they get installed, will they get used? Will they help reduce consumption and emissions? Do people care? Or will they just wait to change their habits when the price of energy escalates, as it will, and has a huge negative effect on them?
> Once you monitor your home energy, with a Smart Meter or Google PowerMeter, you must act to manage it. Do people want to do that? I have found that people would like to curb their emissions and save money, but they do not want a change of lifestyle. If it was automatic, they may embrace it more quickly and passionately.
> Nobody is 100% green, and one of my green sins is not living in a walkable neighborhood. I live about six miles from the center of town, which is not far, but not close enough to ride a bike for running errands (besides that, it’s uphill all the way home!). I have lived in cities and in the heart of smaller towns, and walking or biking everywhere is one thing I do miss where I am now. The pay-off is killer views and peace and quiet, but that’s another story.
As a Realtor®, I was very interested in this article that states foreclosures are higher in non-walkable neighborhoods. The expense of travel is high and hurts a tight budget.
If distance from conveniences is taken into account while applying for a mortgage, this could hurt the people who want to live in a rural area. Would interest rates be higher? Would distance weigh as heavily as the home’s condition or a credit score? There are a lot of implications to ‘predicting mortgage performance’ based on walkability that could be hurtful instead of helpful. I’m open to hearing what you think.
