Green Homes

Joel Garcia Paula and Company Realtors Home build by Manchester Green Homes This home is a Green Certified home designed Read the rest of this entry »

This is a high performance energy efficient home. NAHB Green home with a HERS rating index far surpassing the index Read the rest of this entry »

The 2011 Parade of Homes Award results are in and for the Edmond area, $450,000 to $550,000 category, Manchester Green Homes’ lovely home at 1508 NW 187th St won for Best Landscaping, Best Owner’s Suite, Best Kitchen, Best Overall Design and Best Decorated.

Congratulations to Jim, Sherry, Lacey and everyone at Manchester Green Homes for your clean sweep of the awards!

There are many reasons why green real estate in Oklahoma City is so important these days. One of them is the high cost of living in a home and providing the energy for it. While this is an important point to consider, there is a bigger picture that has to do with the environment and the future.

Every single one of us has a role to play in keeping this planet alive. We all have a responsibility to our children and our children’s children to keep it as clean as possible and to not use up all the resources selfishly during our own lifetimes. There is a bigger picture here and is important to keep it in mind when you are looking at standard homes and green real estate in Oklahoma City.

You know that you aren’t going to change the world by considering green real estate, but we all have the responsibility of playing our own part. Even discussing the issue with your Oklahoma City real estate agent will help bring it home that more and more people are concerned about the environment and want to do something about it.

Green real estate in Oklahoma City will also help you stay healthier and affect the health of your family. There are both short term and long term reasons and goals for looking at real estate that is green. Your health, the environment and the overall costs of running a home all play a part of the big picture.

As more and more people make their intentions known that they are looking for more environmentally friendly choices in Oklahoma City real estate, the more they will be made available. Don’t be afraid to make your voice heard when it comes to green real estate in Oklahoma City.

Concerns about the environment have caused many Oklahoma City real estate developers to consider the benefits of going green to protect and preserve the environment. Some of the ways that a real estate developer can go green are listed below.

Waste Management

Waste management is a big problem for Oklahoma City real estate developers. Providing special dumping yards for garbage is a good idea to manage waste. The waste can be used to produce other useful products like bio gas as another alternative source of energy.

Energy Saving Electricity

Newly constructed homes will start making more use of solar power as the green trend continues. Interiors are also painted in brighter colors that reflect light to reduce the amount of energy required.

Air Purification

This is easily achieved by using plants, trees and flowers when landscaping the property. This approach beautifies the environment, purifies the air and protects the environment from the effects of deforestation.

These methods require more effort and thought but are very useful for a Oklahoma City real estate developer that wants to turn green in order to protect and preserve the environment. You can give me a call anytime to discuss green real estate in Oklahoma City and what kinds of property we have listed that are more green than others.

This week I and my company, Paula and Company Realtors, will be presenting three Parade Homes.  Two are in the Barrington Addition which is south of 192nd between Western and Penn.  The addresses are 19100 Shilstone and 18908 Shilstone. One home is built by Manchester Green Homes and the other by Davenport Homes. They are both on premium lots with nothing behind them but a beautiful view.  The homes decked out with granite, custom flooring, amazing color choices, open floor plans, and gourmet kitchens are stunning visually.  Behind the walls the quality construction is equally beautiful to the informed eye.  Designed to save up to 50% on heating and cooling costs these houses include low e windows,  Zip system sheathing, blown insulation, high efficiency furnaces, Navien tankless water heaters, mastic sealed ducts, and other features that save you money in energy costs as well as providing a home that is more durable providing less repair maintenance.  And for the technophile you will enjoy the whole house audio.

The third home in the Parade of Homes is in Stone Manor at 150th and Council.  The address is 14413 Paddington Ave.  This house features a game room and a theater room and an outdoor kitchen.  Can you say fun house?

The Parade of Home homes will be open from 1 PM to 7 PM daily October 9th-17th.  See you there.

 There is a growing trend for home builders to build green home plans or at least implement green home design in their new home plans.  They are doing this because their is a growing demand for green homes.  So, what is a green home?  A Green Home is a home that is usually certified based on criteria set up by a third party program such as ENERGY STAR or the NAHB NATIONAL GREEN BUILDING PROGRAM.

Why would someone want a green home?  The answer to this question falls into two camps depending on what you want to save.  Some want to save the planet while others just want to save money.  During our current recessionary times I think most are focused on the latter while saving the planet is just a perk.

Currently I am marketing a green home for sale at 8604 SW 57th ST.  (embarrassing plug I know OPEN HOUSE SAT & SUN 12-5 PM).  This home is being certified by both of the aforementioned programs.  Some of the money saving features are low-E windows, Energy Star appliances, energy efficient HVAC, and energy efficient tankless hot water heaters. Some of the planet saving features are the use of indigenous materials and low VOC carpet.   It gives the best of both worlds. Save the planet and save money.  The save the planet push is important to many people and may and should endure but I think we can agree that all people are interested in saving money and that the desire to save money will definitely endure.  This is an idea that is definitely here to stay.  As an example the green home mentioned above was designed to cut utility bills by one half of what they would be on a non-green home.  At 3300 SF it is assumed the bills would be about $500.  If you save half of that you would be saving $250 a month.  The additional cost to make this home green is about $9,000 which financed in the purchase would equal about $50 a month.  So you are spending $50 a month to save $250 a month plus you are helping your environment and your health.  Not a bad deal at all. 

I believe this trend will endure and at some point will become the standard.  If you are buying a new home you should definitely consider buying a green home.  Else, you may find yourself spending money to update your home to green just to be able to sell it.