From today’s Realty Times. I will add that I have seen a huge upswing in property tours at my listings since about January 10th, and even competing offers on one.
Real Estate Outlook: Positive Movement
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It’s a fairly rare event, but now and then most of the important economic directional signs go positive, and this is one of those weeks
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y0K1GemTs3Y]
Wendy discovered a unique dog toy at Scraps Dog Boutique in Seattle on Saturday (2.6.10). It is a “stuffed” bull toy with a pocket that closes with Velcro and holds a used drinking water bottle in it. The crinkly noises made by the bottle are irresistible to Sophia, Wendy’s rescued Italian greyhound. The toy is made with extra durable materials and is refillable with new reused water bottles when the current one gets so smashed it no longer makes good crinkly noises.
In this month’s Built Green News, the project in the spotlight is the Greenbridge Community in White Center just over the current city/county line built by the King County Housing Authority. It is the next closest neighborhood similar to mine, High Point in West Seattle.
Greenbridge is a Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Hope IV redevelopment project in unincorporated King County between White Center and Burien. A model for affordable housing, the community will ultimately consist of 1,000 homes for approximately 3,500 people. In 2007, one of the community’s first homes was Built Green’s 10,000th certified home, and the community also features a Built Green certified YWCA learning center. Minimizing pavement, designing for maximum population, and provision of a diversity of housing types all contributed to making
the development dynamic and community focused. Inclusion of rain gardens, soil amendments and preservation of open spaces ensured the ecological integrity of the site. Committing to certify each of the residences as Built Green 3-Star or better ensured that low income families have access to healthy, energy efficient green housing, Beyond the innovative site design, community amenities and Built Green residences, one of the most striking elements of the community are the over 50 public art installations that are integrated into the downspouts, benches and playground equipment. What King County Housing Authority ultimately created with Greenbridge is one of the nations marquis green, affordable housing projects.
Read the Case Study and be amazed and impressed! And if you are interested in purchasing a Built Green certified home in either of these neighborhoods, contact me, your local Built Green Certified Professional Real Estate Agent.
This song popped up on my iPod the other morning, and it made me smile. Wanted to pass it on.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IIZt4_Z74_s]
See the original video by The Chemical Brothers
I got a phone call yesterday from Viking Bank who wants to talk to me about financing for green homes. I recently switched from Bank of America (since 1988) to Viking Bank and I am so glad to hear they are interested in offering either a product or program that will help people get into sustainable and energy efficient housing!
More later, we’re trading messages at the moment.
Planet Green included a neat article in their last email newsletter, asking “Do You Know Your Green Materials?” They highlight the fact that there is an overwhelming amount of environmentally sustainable materials available today and that it is difficult to choose what to use when you go to build or remodel. One person can’t know everything!
Take their cool quiz, and then explore the Planet Green archives to learn more about the materials that were not on your radar! Featured today is a new ecological footprint calculator that might be worth checking out.
