If you have read past posts on this blog, you already know embodied energy is the energy it takes to create, process and transport a material.

Wood has a low embodied energy and an added bonus is it is a major part of any carbon-management strategy since trees absorb carbon dioxide as they grow. While it does need to be harvested, milled and transported to site, the resources and energy required are much less than the manufacture of fiber cement or PVC siding. Locally harvested woods like cypress, pine and poplar not only use less energy, they keep jobs in North Carolina.

What about maintenance?  Well, vinyl has proved it is not final and it lowers the appraisal of your home.  Fiber cement does not need to be painted as often as wood, however staining wood with either a semi-transparent or opaque stain solves the painting issue with wood.  Two coats of stain on cypress siding can last up to 12 years or more.

As energy prices rise, using wood makes more and more sense and cents!

   Home automation can be affordable! The most basic and inexpensive device - a programmable thermostat - can cut energy costs. Programming to set the temperature back 10 to 15 percent for eight hours a day (from 72 to 65 degrees F in the winter, for example) can save up to 15 percent annually on your heating bill, according to the U.S. Department of Energy. Your own routine and seasonal shifts of schedules with heating/cooling control, can increase your savings further.

       Technology is changing so fast that digital and wireless automated systems cost a fraction of what they did a few years ago, yet they offer the same or even better functionality. Programmable thermostat costs anywhere from about $30 to about $100. Whole-house automation systems can range from about $5,000 to about $30,000 depending on the size of your home and the complexity of the system.  Yet, a simple start up package are well under $2000.    

      Outline your objectives for a system and  evaluate the initial cost, the expected return on investment, the ability to upgrade or expand the system, and the ease of use.     

While on a building tour of alternative building, I saw many wonderful outbuildings, fences, etc built from found materials.  It inspired me to post a couple from our property.

 Here are some projects from my farm we have created from recycled materials.  The hoophouse is a project in progress.  The frame is from a trampoline.  We've already used components from the the trampoline to build a moveable pen for our geese, a rolling bar to easily move a goat shelter and the trampoline itself as a shadecloth.  Haven't found a use for all the springs....yet.  

 This 'duck dome' home is topped with one of the many satellite dishes that were on the property when we bought it.   The metalwork was so good, we just kept it around for a few years until my husband and son built this as a mother's day gift a couple of years ago.  My sweet ducky girls sleep safe now.

 Appraiser Stacey P. Anfindsen from the Birch Appraisal Group recently sent the following report.  If you receive my newsletter or have read this blog in the recent past, there will be redundant information.

The low rate of national and local consumer confidence and the inability of out of town sellers to sell their existing residence have produced a buying funk on the local level. Second quarter market numbers were a slight improvement over numbers posted during the first quarter, but inferior to numbers posted in the second quarter of 2007. I will break my analysis into three parts; inventory, pending sales and closed sales.
 
June showings were down 19% in Durham, 19% in Orange and 17% in Chatham compared to 6/07.  Lower showings are one of the reasons for increased inventory. Current listings are at the highest level within the past 6 months and are the highest amount of June listings within the past four years. For the first part of this decade, resale inventory was decreasing.  Resale inventory is now the main growth component with percentage increases of 5% in Durham, 6% in Orange and 21% in Chatham. Such inventory growth has had an effect on home sellers. The number of sellers who have dropped price from original list has increased significantly in each county. Those sellers who have not found a price acceptable to current buyers have produced a dramatic increase in the number of expired and withdrawn listings.
 
Higher inventory, lower showings and an increase in the amount of expired and withdrawn listings typically produce a lower amount of pending sales. Listings with a status change from active to pending decreased 16% in Chatham, 21% in Durham and 7% in Orange. There was a 26% drop in contract pending sales in all of TMLS. 
 
The result of the above has been a decrease in the amount of closed sales. Durham second quarter closings are off 29%, Orange closings were off 18% and Chatham closings were off 17%. Second quarter closings in TMLS were down 27%. The average days on market for closings increased in each county with the average closing in Chatham taking 115 days, the average closing in Orange taking 82 days and the average Durham home taking 80 days.
 
Increased inventory and a lower amount of closings has produced a higher current supply. The current supply of housing in TMLS is at 7 months.  Per the National Association of Realtors, the national current supply of housing is 11 months. The current supply in Durham is 7 months, the current supply in Orange is 7 months and the current supply in Chatham is 19 months.
 
The only bright spot in the market pertains to house prices. The average list price is up in Durham and Orange and flat in Chatham compared to 6/07. The average closed price is down 1% in Durham, 2% in Orange and up 3% in Chatham. Appreciation rates in each county are above the national average.
 
 The main trouble spot in the three county area involves housing priced at 800k and above in Chatham County. There is a 40 month supply of new and resale housing within this market segment. The market has historically absorbed between 2 and 3 houses per month in this segment, so house prices are either going to reduced dramatically or taken off of the market in order to get supply down.
 
Many agents that I have spoken with have stated that they have buyers who are able, but not currently willing to purchase a residence in our market. This is the "dam" that must be broken in order to reverse current sales and listing trends. The purchase of a residence requires confidence. For the majority of my lifetime, residential house price values and the market in general have never been questioned. Homeownership and house price appreciation have been cornerstones of the American Dream. Within the last nine months, we have been bombarded with stories regarding foreclosures, house price depreciation, credit tightening and the inability to sell a residence in a different part of the country.
 
The rest of this year and into 2009 will be choppy waters for both the national and local real estate markets. What we have in our favor is positive job growth, many inventory choices, house price appreciation and the continued presence on "top lists" which helps with our population growth.

 From Director of Community Relations Chatham County Manager's Office

Chatham County residents can expect to receive their 2008 county tax bills within the next couple of weeks. "They will be mailed on August 4th," said Chatham County Tax Administrator Tina Stone.

The current tax rate is 65.3 cents per $100 valuation, an increase of 3.6 cents from last year. However, it is 1.9 cents lower than the proposed budget had provided. About 58% of the tax increase will be used for school needs and to create a capital reserve fund for park facilities, while the rest will be used for general county programs and personnel.

"We would prefer not to have any tax increase at all," said George Lucier, chair of the Board of Commissioners. "However, we did not see a way to further reduce the budget without hurting important programs and services."

Lucier added that other local governments across the state also have been impacted by the economic situation, but "this is often the time that we see an increased demand for certain services. It is a difficult dilemma for elected officials."

Stone said that it is important for taxpayers to carefully review their tax bills after receiving them. If they identify problems or have questions, they should contact the Tax Office as soon as possible at 919-542-8250. In some cases, taxpayers will receive one bill covering both real estate property and personal property (such as a boat or mobile home), while some will receive separate bills for different properties.

For residents living outside incorporated towns, which have their own municipal waste collection, the county property tax bill includes the county's annual Solid Waste Fee. The fee was increased by $10 (or 8%) per residence to accumulate funds to build a new waste and recycling center. Information on services from Chatham County's Waste Management Department is included in the tax bill mailing.

The county allows an exemption from the Solid Waste Fee when the residence is not habitable or it has been vacant for more than two years. To be eligible for the fee exemption, taxpayers must file an application with the Tax Office by January 5, 2009, but the fees will not be waived after this deadline.

The tax bill mailing also includes an insert about the county's revaluation of real property, which will take effect in January, 2009. Chatham County revalues real property (land, buildings, etc.) every four years.

The deadline to appeal real estate property tax values for the current tax year has already passed, but taxpayers may appeal the value, location (situs) or taxability of personal property within 30 days of the tax billing date (included on the tax bill). Personal property includes mobile homes, boats and motors, airplanes, unlicensed vehicles, or business personal property..

"It is important for people to know that the deadline to appeal personal property values is set by state law and is not negotiable," Stone said.

Taxpayers are billed for any personal property they owned as of January 1, 2008. "If you owned a boat on January 1 of this year and sold it the next month, you still owe the full year of personal property taxes for that boat," Stone said.

Real estate property taxes also are billed based on January 1, 2008 ownership. "However, the county now has the capability of mailing the bill to the owner as of the billing date. The owner as of January 1 will be printed on the bill as well," Stone said.

She added that the attorney handling the property closing usually requires the seller to pay a prorated share of taxes, with the buyer paying the remaining balance. "If you receive a tax bill for a property you sold earlier this year, we strongly you to send the property's 2008 tax bill to the new owners immediately to avoid problems with delinquent taxes," Stone said.

The Tax Office offers several methods of payment, including the chance to pay in installments. You can pay your taxes in partial payments by either mailing them to P.O. Box 697, Pittsboro, NC 27312 or by visiting the Tax Office in Pittsboro in the Courthouse Annex. If making a partial payment, please include your tax ID account number (found on your tax bill) on all payments.

Those paying in installments must complete all payments by the January 5, 2009 deadline, as required by state law. Those who do not pay in full by the deadline will be subject to additional charges and enforcement procedures..

For more information on other tax payment options, including payment by credit card or bank draft, contact the Tax Collections Office at 919-542-8260 or visit the following website: http://www.chathamnc.org/Index.aspx?page=479

Residents not receiving their 2008 property tax bills by early September should contact the Tax Listing Office at 919-542-8250.

Debra J Henzey
Director of Community Relations
Chatham County Manager's Office
919-542-8258

       Recently I learned how to be rich.  Alas, not because I AM suddenly rich, but because I have observed it being done unsuccessfully and done well.  Like all things done well, it looks easy.  Don't be fooled.  There is real skill involved.

        This fact was made abundantly clear to me in the months since my wealthy neighbors sold their house and moved.  They are nice people who happen to have a lot of money. That is what I thought....but they are so much more...they are money smart.  I'm not talking investing money smart.  I'm talking about how to behave with money.

       The money smart neighbors made friends with the neighbors.  Were we all buddies?  No.  Did we know each other well enough to call the police if someone odd was in the driveway loading up a truck.  Yes.  Call in the middle of night.  Yes.  Check on the house while on vacation.  Yes.  That's a cheap back up security system.

       The smart money neighbors hired the best craftsmen to paint, create cabinetry, install landscaping, maintain gardens, etc.  This not only protected their real estate investment, it provided a community service by keeping skilled artisans employed and in our area.

     In contrast, our new wealthy neighbors have not bothered to meet the neighbors, with the exception of the most knowledgeable person regarding their newly purchased estate (this neighbor had helped the previous owners find workers, learn how to use a tractor, etc.). They want to ‘hire' him. 

    The upkeep of the place has declined dramatically.  The ‘upgrades' being made appear to be made by the lowest bidder, since what can see is not done well and what we can't see is done by workers who trail trash out their trucks as they drive away.

    Then there are other annoyances, loud music, barking dogs, and party guests parking on our property.  These would all be minor offenses, more easily tolerated when you know the people.  It festers when you don't.

    Finally, what I find most offensive and what my grandmother would call ‘just common', is not taking care with their animals.  When one of the dogs barked incessantly for two days, my husband finally decided the poor thing was in distress.  Since no one seemed to be home, he went to check on the dog. 

    The abandoned dog had been traumatized by a lightening/rain storm the night before and with good reason.  He was on a 10' chain fastened to a METAL fence.  There was no food, a water bowl barely within his reach, no shelter and he had to sit in a puddle of mud.  It was heart breaking. After comforting the dog, we wrestled with what to do.  Call the animal protection society?  About an hour later someone came home and rescued the dog.

   It is easier in the city to fool ourselves that we don't need anybody else.  However, remember how critical it was that people assisted total strangers on 9/11? We are reminded regularly in a rural area that we depend on each other.; animals get out of pens, trees come down in storms,  power outages are more frequent, tools are shared more often and the store is farther away prompting the familiar "can I borrow a cup of sugar?".

 When you move to the country no matter how much money you have, being a good neighbor is not just the nice to do it is the smart thing to do.

Recently I spoke with a developer who was not convinced that green buiding had 'legs'.  He thinks it's a fad or something for liberal 'greenheads'.  After sending him much information, visiting mainstream green communities and reading about the advantages of green in conservative publications, liberal publications and homebuilding publications, he has become a believer.  In fact, I'm sure he thinks it is his idea to promote a green community.

The bottomline I gave him is:

I believe in the next 5 years, it will be a law to build to at least the energy star standard.

Building green has evolved from trend to standard, both locally and  nationally

Green homes are seen as patriotic, environmentally friendly,'creator' honoring and financially smart. It hits everybody in their moral or spiritual center.  

 Tax incentives and price breaks from lenders and utility companies are added dividends.  

If you build a house that is not at least energy star rated, you are building an obsolete home.  That simple.

Consumers will opt for this on their own, in fact, their lender may insist upon it!

Listening to the national economic news is just depressing, however keep in mind real estate is a LOCAL commodity.  Our local real estate market is still one of the best in the country.  It HAS changed in the last year.  There IS more inventory, but not at all price points.  Homes do stay on the market longer, about twice as long, but again, not at all price points.  There is still the occasional multi offer situation on a home and back up offers on homes under-contract are not unusual.  These occur most often on properties in ideal locations, with lower price points or unique, fine crafted homes.

    The increased inventory means there is up to a 10 month supply of homes for buyers to choose from.  That translates to a BUYERS MARKET.  There has not been such a great time to buy a house here in the last decade. Good supply, still reasonable interest rates and sellers who will probably be flexible with negotiations and terms create a very buyer friendly atmosphere. For buyers with good credit, having this kind of choice (in a market that is still appreciating, even in this sluggish economy) is a  rare opportunity indeed!

    Sellers don't have to give their house away, but they do need to be prepared to have the house on the market six months or so.  This is tough.  Keeping the house in showing condition (clean, de-clutterd, odor free,  staged, neutral) is exhausting, but critical to selling the house for the most amount of money. You may also want to consider (or will be asked )to provide a home warranty policy and/or  pay for some closing costs. Buyers are going to be more persistent in their demands for repairs.  Keep these costs in mind when you price the house and/or accept an offer.

    The new Offer to Purchase contract suggests the seller get a home inspection before they put the house on the market.  I have mixed feelings about this, as it seems like an onerous demand for the seller.  Call me if you would like to discuss the pros and cons of a pre-listing inspection.  Buyers may come to expect it, especially in an older home.

    Speaking of an older home, if  you are considering putting your home on the market, think green.  You have to have been under a rock for the last year if you haven't noticed how ‘green' is being marketed to sell everything from diapers to homes.  If you have a home already built...you have the greenest home of all!  See my blog posts on June 17th about this point.

     Sellers may also consider becoming landlords. Some buyers are having difficulties obtaining financing, not because of income requirements, but because down payments have increased, credit scores need to be higher and reserves are now often required.  This has increased the renter pool.  One additional factor in some of our areas is the grad or med student population.  Many of these folks bought and sold in a few short years.  They are much more reticent to buy these days, but they make great renters.

      One area that remains strong and is enjoying tremendous appreciation is land.  Land has appreciated in the Triangle area 40% in just the last six years.  Land in a great location, or with an in demand feature like waterfront  is still selling briskly.  If you find land at a good price, it is a great investment.

       The Triangle's housing market remains stronger than most because of our stoked demand from people moving here, diversity in employment, strong job market and because we never saw the kind of speculative building that's led to crashing home prices in Nevada, Florida and California. We continued to be sited as a great place to live by magazines, web authors and relatives or friends!

  Planning for solar panels is the latest post on a terrific blog by PJ Nery dedicated to keeping you informed on high performance building techniques, products and ideas in the southest. 

  Discover how to plan for solar panels now or for installation at a future date at his blog, www.PracticalEco.com. 

Last week I began to see things at home much more clearly.  That's because Dwain Ritchie with Ritchie's Window Cleaning Service visited.  Hiring his company was some of the best money I have spent all year.  It is a true value.  What would have taken me all day (and a lot of grumbling) took him a little over two hours.  Screens off, windows cleaned inside and out, screens on.  Done. 

He did shatter one of my time honored theories.  Seems dirt does not provide a protective barrier on windows.  Indeed, if you leave it too long and have screens, it can result in screen burn, much like screen burn on a computer monitor. 

If you too, would like to see more clearly, give Dwain a call: Dwain Ritchie 919.636.0069

Embodied energy is the energy required to extract, process, manufacture, transport, and install building materials. A typical building of the mid-20th century required the equivalent of five to 15 gallons of gasoline per square foot. . "Old buildings are a fossil fuel repository," as MichaelJackson, an architect with the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency, put it, "places where we've saved energy."

Purchasing an older home IS the greenest home.

Foot for foot, it takes about 13 years to recoup lost energy, for a new, environmentally efficient home. However, since most new homes are much larger than older homes, the time to recoup the lost energy is closer to 25 years.

Once you work embodied energy into your energy budget, even a new, energy-efficient office building doesn't actually start saving energy for about 40 years. The break-even period stretches to close to 65 years for older buildings to account for the energy to knock them down the building and haul them away. 

At the risk of repeating myself from an earlier post, an older home usually means a larger lot closer to town with established landscaping.  In our area, buying an older home also increases your chance of being near mass transit to Chapel Hill, Durham, UNC or Duke.  Getting rid of one of your cars frees up money for fun and is just one less thing to worry about. 

Go green!

The Greenest Building is the One Already Built says architect Carl Efefante. Exactly the sentiment I wrote about a few weeks ago.

How "ungreen" and energy inefficient are older buildings?

Not very. The reputation of older structures as energy sieves, in short, is simply not justified by the data. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, commercial buildings constructed prior to 1920 have an average energy consumption of 80,127 BTUs per square foot. For the more efficient buildings built since 2000, that number is 79,703 BTUs. (The energy efficiency of buildings constructed between these years was less enviable-reaching around 100,000 BTUs-reflecting the cheap oil and electricity of the thermostat age.)

According to the Whole Building Design Guide, for instance, an older single-pane window has an insulation factor of R1. A modern double-glazed window offers R3 insulation. Yet if the walls of a historic building have an R-value in the teens, "taking a window from R1 to R3 will not provide sufficient energy savings to offset the cost of replacement windows and associated waste," according to the guide.

Depending on the climate and the window cost, the payback period for replacement windows can be as long as 20 to 30 years.

 "We call them replacement windows because you keep replacing them," claims John Seekircher.

When modern windows, with their high-tech seals, eventually fail-and they will-the result tends to be catastrophic failure. You don't repair them. You replace them. Anyone who doesn't see something amiss in replacing century-old windows with "environmentally responsible" windows that will be junked and replaced every decade or two is suffering from an irony deficiency.

There is an option for older windows most people aren't aware of, low-e storm windows. Although many window suppliers are unfamilar with the product, low-e storms can be ordered. According to a recent study, the payback period for installing low-e storm windows is just over 4 years.

Buying an older home is what Wired magazine has termed " stealth green".  There are no solar panels, invertor closets or other cool gadgets.  Just established buildings that you can make even more green with thoughtful choices regarding appliances, water heaters, awnings, etc.

What is a Real Estate Short Sale?

 A Short Sale is when a lender agrees to receive a lower amount of an owed debt in exchange for the sale of the property to a third party, usually at no cost to the borrower. 

Short sales are also a way for a homeowner to avoid foreclosure on their home and save their credit .  Why would a lender agree to accepting less than they are owed?  Foreclosure is expensive for a mortgage lender and they are in the business of making loans, not owning real estate. 

 A short sale avoids the floreclosure process by selling the home before the bank takes it back.  Therefore, it is critical for homeowners to work with a Short Sale Expert long before they are 90 days behind in their payments.  The process of selling a short sale home is longer and involves more red tape than a traditional sale.  Someone who is trained to work short sales can streamline the process and increase the likelihood of an accepted short sale by being involved early in the sellers' hardship.  It is best to contact me or your chosen short sale agent before you miss a payment!

There are countless hardships that can turn home ownership from a joy into a burden.  A divorce, extended illness., loss of employment, or an unexpected hike in monthly payments can all make a mortgage unaffordable. Ignoring the bills will not make them go away, it will only make things worse.

If you need help a short sale may be the answer. If you would like to discuss how a short sale might help you, please contact me at mari@hiddencoast.com.

www.HiddenCoast.com

www.NCShortSaleExpert.com

  Last fall I posted tips on dealing with drought conditions in the  garden and with landscaping.  I shared my spring plan of sticking to annuals from seed since another summer of drought was predicted.  That way if they died, I did not have a huge financial loss. Good advice. If only I had followed it! 

   I was seduced in May by the soft petals of phlox and vervain, they are now planted in the island in front of my house.  A treasured gardening memoir I re-read almost every winter chided me for not having babtista in my garden.  I do now.  My yard is a designated a monarch butterfly waystation, so additional milkweed needed to be planted.  My husband and I  had a huge mock orange in our yard off Homestead Rd, in Chapel Hill (back when that was the country!) and I have longed for one ever since.  I found one at a fabulous price two months ago and it is now planted close enough to our back deck and side door to declare it officially spring each year with its sweet fragrance.

   So, again this summer additional pumping from the pond may be necessary to keep the beds watered. All the new plantings are getting hand watered everyday.  The established beds are lined with soaker hoses.  Water cones and funky 2 liter bottles are set up in the vegetable garden.  Polymer beads are mixed in the soil of the potted plants.  Rain dances are being practiced.  All that because I failed to follow my own advice.

    And...I did plant loads of annuals from seeds.

Members of the Chatham County Yacht and Tractor Club are traveling down to Pamlico County to attend the 19th annual Whortonsville Summer Solstice Sailabration.  The event is open to boats at least 19' long and is designed to be a pursuit sailboat race in which slower boats are given a time advantage and allowed to start the ten mile race earlier than the faster boat.   Starting times are scheduled over a two hour period.  Entry forms are available online at www.TownDock.net

If local skipper (and veterinarian extraordinaire), Margaret Alexander,  is racing...watch out...she kicks butt.

   The latest data from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics indicated that Raliegh and the Triangle had the highest job growth rate in the nations for the 12 month period of February 2007-2008.

    This is in part why the real estate appreciation rate in our area has remained steady.  Days on market have increased a bit, inventory has increased a bit in mid-to-low priced homes, and inventory of upper end homes has increased substantially.

    We don't exactly have a full fledged buyers market, however, sellers are willing to negotiate on repairs, assist with closing costs or consider moving some on price.  Just a year or so ago, sellers were not surprised to have multiple offers, often over asking price, so they weren't giving much away.

     So here we are in a win-win situation for buyers and sellers. 

 For buyers: Interest rates are low, there is a good range of properties to choose from,  the pressure to make a quick decision before someone else gets THE house has almost disappeared and sellers are preparing their homes for market better.

For sellers:  We have both local and relocating buyers in our market.  Lenders and underwriters feel more comfortable than in some other areas of the country providing mortgages here because of job growth, continued appreciation and low foreclosure rates.

Now is a great time to buy or sell a home.

      Following up on an earlier blog post regarding the ultimate green home....an older home.  If you have watched Hidden Potential on HGTV, you may have wondered how these folks financed those renovations in a home they did not already own.

       The tool they use is a construction/renovation loan.  The purchase closing, construction loan and permanent mortgage are all done at one closing with most lenders.  Jennifer Foster, at Suntrust, tells me, "The buyer must have a 5% down payment on the total amount (purchase price plus costs estimate).  Plans and costs breakdownneed to be provided underwriting before we go to closing.   The appraisal will be a "subject to" value so I'll need to share the plans with the appraiser as well."

   For years I have wanted to get a European Style scythe, but I was concerned I wouldn't use it enough to justify the cost.  Two weeks ago I finally broke down and bought one.  How sorry I am I waited so long to get it.

    The first time I used it was to clear an area where I have our new geese penned.  My husband got the brushwacker out to work in the same paddock and I got the new scythe.  By the time he was done trying to get the brushwacker started, cussing the maker, and using very colorful language.....I was done. 

    Not only was it quick and easy to use.  It was quiet.  A scythe would be great for small yards in neighborhoods.  Indeed, the first time I saw one used was in a small town in northern Italy.  It tookan elderly man 15 minutes to cut a small yard.

    It is also great for farmsteads.  I use it to trim around carts, trees, and marsh areas too soft for a mower.  It's lightweight, easy to start (if I've had my coffee) and doesn't use gas.

     If you are interested in a scythe,the folks at  www.ScytheSupply.com are VERY helpful.  There are also some good scythe videos on U-tube.

1.    Weaver Street Market  will open up the end of May downtown.

2.     A new parking structure with 400 parking places just opened up last week.  The only downtown in the area with no parking problems.

 3.    Easy access via 40,85 or 70 to Chapel Hill, Durham, RTP and Burlington...all employment centers

4.    Excellent schools

5.    Still more affordable than Chapel Hill

6.    June 3rd, a huge retail/residential project is scheduled to be ok'd, if it is, everything will increase in price practically overnight. 

7.    A Triangle mass transit train spur MAY be placed in Hillsborough.  Again, if that goes through this area will be even more sought after.

8.    UNC North is being built even as we speak.  Many people working there will move to Hillsborough.

9.   Lovely historic downtown district with restaurants, shops and a park.

10.  Interesting people, including the town poet laureate...Mike Troy.

If you have ever watched HGTV's Hidden Potential, you have seen how an older home can be transformed.

One of the best ways to buy a ‘green' home is to buy a home that is already built.  New construction creates HUGE amounts of waste that goes to the landfill. 

What do you get with an older home?  Usually, a larger lot that is closer to town with established landscaping.  That often means trees that are large enough to provide shade in the summer which help keep your home cooler; up to 20% cooler!  In Chapel Hill, Carrboro or Durham, it can mean having access to the bus system.

 Yes, there can be some drawbacks; an aging roof, HVAC system, single pane windows and perhaps lack of amenities like storage or en suite master baths. 

A couple of strategies can help you with the drawbacks.  First, look for homes that are 10 years or older.  Homeowners have already started to update or replace the water heater, roof, etc.  Second, find a home that can be updated or made more energy efficient at 5% of its sale price.  You can then remodel the home to your specs and taste with a construction/renovation loan.  The purchase closing, renovation loan and permanent mortgage are all done at one closing.

 Jennifer Foster, with Suntrust, says, "the buyer must have a 5% down payment on the total amount (purchase price plus cost estimate).  I'll need plans and cost breakdown for underwriting before we go to closing.  The appraisal will be a "subject to" value so I'll need to share the plans with the appraiser as well."