Green – It’s about Saving Money

Part 5 of – see bottom for links to each post in the series. This post was actually a work-in-progress from several weeks ago, but the conversation on the radio spurred me to finish it.

From TallWall (no longer available) (thanks to @G2Architecture):

Myth 2: Green consumers’ main motivation when reducing their energy use is to save the planet.

When asked the most important reason to reduce energy consumption, 73% chose “to reduce my bills/control costs” and only 26% chose “to lessen my impact on the environment.”

Duh.

Green Homes = Common Sense (2007)

When given the option to build green, will Buyers take it? (2008)

Proof There is a Market for Recycling in Charlottesville (and Albemarle) (2009)

As I said in a comment in 2008 on the Going Green to Save Green story:

I think his perspective is probably representative of the vast majority of consumers. My clients generally don’t necessarily care about their carbon footprints, but do care about saving money.If saving money means green, so be it.

10 Strategies to Increase the Energy Efficiency of Your Homes (no longer available)

Politically, as part of the Cap and Trade/Tax bill:
From Fast Company in October 2009:

Vice President Joe Biden and the government’s Middle Class Task Force unveiled a report this week that aims to make homes more energy efficient. Dubbed “Recovery Through Retrofit,” the report offers suggestions on how to use existing Recovery Act funding to create a home energy efficiency retrofit industry. An ambitious goal, to be sure, but is it plausible?

While by no means a comprehensive list, some of the green homes in Charlottesville can be found in the following neighborhoods:

– Belvedere
– Old Trail
– Westhall
– Wickham Pond
– Avon Park
– Poplar Glen
– Montgomery Ridge

The Code of the Commonwealth of Virginia allows for:

A. Energy-efficient buildings, not including the real estate or land on which they are located, are hereby declared to be a separate class of property and shall constitute a classification for local taxation separate from other classifications of real property. The governing body of any county, city, or town may, by ordinance, levy a tax on the value of such buildings at a different rate from that of tax levied on other real property. The rate of tax imposed by any county, city, or town on such buildings shall not exceed that applicable to the general class of real property.

B. For purposes of this section, an energy-efficient building is any building that exceeds the energy efficiency standards prescribed in the Virginia Uniform Statewide Building Code by 30 percent. Energy-efficient building certification for purposes of this subsection shall be determined by any qualified architect, professional engineer, or licensed contractor who is not related to the taxpayer and who shall certify to the taxpayer that he or she has qualifications to provide the certification.

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Part 1- Quick Update on the Charlottesville Real Estate Market
Part 2 – Short sales and Foreclosures in Charlottesville
Part 3 – Homebuyer tax credit in 2010 – Who’s Eligible?
Part 4 – Strategic Defaults in Charlottesville – What will 2010 look like?
Part 5 – Green building trends in Charlottesville

Podcast of the full hour show and transcript.