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Green is Definitely Hot... But That's Not the Reason I'm Into Green

The term "Green" is so HOT thanks to all the media coverage and our new President, that I don't know of anyone that doesn't know a little bit about the Green Movement. I've been studying this movement for over three years when I first read an article in REALTOR magazine about Green Homes. Right from the first I was intrigued and started getting more information. Quite a funny story with that one since no one knew which was the best course of action so I basically started the "self-teaching" process by attending TONS of seminars (designed mainly for builders) and finding out about builder's organizations like Green Built Michigan and LEED for Homes. I even joined the local HBA (Home Builder's Association) to get more information.

My "Green" Process
As a real estate agent, looking for more information it honestly was a frustrating, long process. However, with my new interest I have probably learned more than I need to know and am thankful for what I've learned. You need to have someone that has learned the "ABC's" of Green!

ECOBROKER Designation
Recently, I've just finished my EcoBroker designation for real estate which is a premier designation for real estate professionals that gives specific training on environmental and energy efficient qualities of a home. Why, is this important? Because many people can claim to be "Green", but in reality that's all it is ~ IS A CLAIM. Now, I promise not to "claim" to know everything because there is so much to know, but I do know enough to point you in the direction of which expert you should talk to in regards to your situation. Grand Rapids has some fantastic suppliers/contractors that are truly building/remodeling Green homes. You can call me anytime, if you need that information.

Quite honestly, you all know where the market is at. What I've learned this last year is what I wanted to do with it. Foreclosures are great for the deal that you are getting but why not remodel and add some of those energy-efficient features that will be worthwhile in the future. What I'm finding is that with the current economic situation, more people are starting to think long term on savings and creating that energy-efficient home is definitely a great start. By doing the proper planning (whether it's a remodel, quick fix, or new construction), you can save lots of GREEN $$$.

I'm excited about the future! I'm excited by the possibilities of what the Green movement can do for you as far as cost savings. On a personal spiritual note, I'm excited that we are trying to take care of God's Green Earth, which is one of the reasons that I care about Green. I don't believe God created the beauty around us so that we could fill it with all our trash. Just a side note and one of my beliefs! :)

No, I Didn't Disappear...I'm Still Here!

Wow…Hmmm. What else can I say? Well, I guess not much considering I haven’t said anything for the last 3 months on my blog. Which is absolutely terrible but given the circumstances and the market conditions over this time period, I don’t think I knew what to say. O.K. that’s not exactly true. I had a lot to say about the economy and the real estate market, but chose not to.

For the most part, I try to put a positive spin on things. Watching the stock market and seeing the upheaval would have made me look hypocritical if I painted a rosy picture.

In the last few months, I’ve taken in the big picture and been dumbfounded. I don’t know why because the writing has been on the wall. Everyone loved the ‘90’s and the boom in the economy. We were buying nice cars, nice homes, nice boats… basically whatever we could get our hands on. It was a great time and quite honestly most people were overspending. Mortgages were a dime a dozen and people who were getting credit had little to no down payment were doing so with ease.

Oh yeah, and let’s not forget about the A.R.M.s (Adjustable Rate Mortgages). Hey, I’m not going to put down people who took advantage of the ARMs because I was one of them. However, I did refinance and change over to a fixed loan within a couple of years. The system worked for me, but for others not so well. I know of several individuals that are stuck in these type of mortgages and now are unable to refinance because of the downturn in the market and lack of equity in their homes. One gal was going up to 10% interest rate at which she mentioned to me that because she was unable to refinance, she would no longer be able to afford her home and would probably go into foreclosure. Sad story, but true.

So with this story and other friends and family losing their jobs, what should we expect when we have overextended ourselves and our budget.

1) (I’m probably not going to make many friends with this statement!) The American public in general is to blame because they did sign the papers, they did overspend, and they are now financially paying for it with homes that are foreclosed upon, cars that are repossessed etc…

2) Let’s give credit where credit is due… banks and mortgage companies were too loose in their guidelines allowing people who shouldn’t have been granted credit or those who have good credit, TOO MUCH credit.

O.K. looking back that’s easy to see and as we continue to progress, we still have a long way to go to dig us out of the hole, now as a nation.

Looking Ahead

Looking forward and in my OPTIMISTIC point of view, I do see good things around the corner. Not sure how long it will take to turn the corner, but here’s some things that can be said:

1) Not to sound like a broken record BUT if you have money, it seriously is the time to invest in a home. Interest rates are at all time lows, homes are at all time lows, and with everything else, the housing market will return a good investment.

2) I hope that with the pain of the economy, people will learn to spend within their limits and our headlines can stop talking about all the foreclosures because there won’t be as many.

3) P.S. Did you know that we have always had foreclosures? Foreclosures are not a new thing, it’s just that more people are aware of them now. Also, we will continue to have foreclosures in the future as well. Let’s hope that it’s not your home!

So, while I didn’t give you my whole take on the economy and the politics behind it, I made my points. Banks and lending institutions are easing up a little bit from the very strict guidelines that were put in place with the economy/real estate market fiasco, which should make it easier for buyers to qualify for a loan again. Somewhere there has to be a happy medium in the lending field and we may be getting a little bit closer to it. I guess it’s all in time and we shall all see what happens in the future together!

Business Review Write-Up... Green Realtor, Yes I am!

Lately, I had the priviledge of being interviewed in the Business Review. It's a little bit intimidating especially since you don't know exactly what or how your words were interpreted, but it came out pretty well. I, of course, kept a copy of the newsprint for my records which contained my pretty little picture but thought you might want to read the online version (which doesn't have my pretty little picture but one of Kari Bliss, a great REALTOR for Bazzani that is also a GREEN REALTOR.) Oh well, still a good article that I think you should read but of course, I would think that since it was a write up about me, right? :)

Here's what you need to know.