Nestled along Florida’s East coast, Palm Coast is a beautiful city for the Florida home buyer to explore.  If you are considering a new green home purchase in Florida and would like to live in a community loaded with amenities, community spirit, and Old Florida charm, Palm Coast may be the place for you.

About Palm Coast

Palm Coast is located north of Daytona Beach and south of St. Augustine, within easy driving distance of the bustling cities of Jacksonville and Orlando.   Palm Coast residents with a taste for the outdoors have easy access to natural wetlands, parks, canals, and hiking trails.

For the fishing enthusiast, there are numerous opportunities for both salt and fresh water fishing in and around Palm Coast.  If fishing isn’t for you, beautiful weather allows for year-round golfing, tennis, boating, visits to pristine area beaches and so much more.

With any new home purchase, you should carefully explore your city and neighborhood of choice, and do as much research as possible to find out exactly what that community has to offer.  Amenities, proximity to work, schools, medical centers, shopping, parks and recreational activities should be taken into consideration when evaluating your target neighborhood.

When you visit Palm Coast, the Chamber of Commerce will be able to provide you with a wealth of valuable information, as will the local newspapers.  As you would in any other city, it pays to do plenty of research before you buy your new Palm Coast Fl Green Home.

Finding a home within your target neighborhood

If you decide Palm Coast is the right community for you, it is time to decide whether you will purchase an existing home or a newly constructed home.  For either type of home, it is a good idea to explore different neighborhoods and make note of any homes for sale which catch your interest.   Explore new home developments and visit the sales offices to get a feel for the area builders.

A Realtor can be an enormous help when searching for a new home, and can either negotiate an existing home sale, or help you purchase a newly constructed green home.  When searching for a Realtor, be sure to find someone you are comfortable with and who only shows you the types of homes you are looking for.  If a Realtor ignores your wishes from the beginning and immediately takes you to see homes of the wrong size or price range, you should continue your search elsewhere.

For the existing home buyer

When purchasing an existing home in Palm Coast, there are a few key things that you will want to keep in mind.  Existing homes may come with problems that aren’t visible on the surface.  Unless it has been extensively renovated, an older home will have a lot more wear and tear than a new green home.

So what do you look for?  First, if the home was built before lead paint restrictions were put into place, an old-style furnace which will need to be removed, or if it has outdated plumbing and electrical systems, additional money will need to be spent on renovations in these areas.  A home inspection will give you a much better idea of how much you will need to spend on repairs, so don’t skip this crucial step in the home buying process.

Buying a newly constructed Palm Coast green home

Some home buyers shy away from having a new home built because they worry that it will be too expensive.  Admittedly, having a custom home built may come with a larger sticker price at first, but in the long run, a brand-new green home can be the most cost effective option.

Buying a brand new home immediately alleviates several new home buying worries.  There is no need to worry about expensive repairs, termites, wood rot, leaks, or flood damage.  As an added bonus, custom home builders allow buyers to choose both the interior and exterior color and decor.

Smart buyers are successful buyers

Regardless of where you choose to live and what type of  home you decide to buy, do your homework, develop a plan of action, and shop smart.  The more you prepare for and plan your home buying experience, the more successful you will be. Read more about Green Home in Florida

Florida Green Homes  about green home construction.

The management group at Florida Green Homes is on a mission. This Florida home builder would like to educate the general public, elected officials, realtors and the media as to what certified green construction is all about… for FREE. They’re heading into the project without commercial purposes or profit in mind because all their experience in green construction has shown them that most people still don’t understand how green construction can benefit them.

They figured that with a new home under construction at 25 Emerald Lake Court in the Palm Coast Plantation community on Colbert Lane, they had an actual open air laboratory where everyone could take advantage of their expertise and years of experience in a forum of give and take with actual examples of just about everything that would be discussed plainly visible, graphically showing what will make the house green and lead to Platinum Certification by the Florida Green Building Coalition..

The exterior walls are up and still open which will enable visitors to see the big difference between super-insulated, steel-reinforced, poured concrete walls with an insulation value more than four times that of standard construction (R-47 vs. R-11), providing additional energy savings, moisture resistance, and are able to withstand hurricane force winds of up to 200 miles per hour. The roof is on, but not yet shingled. And, the interior walls are studded-out. One of Florida Green Homes’ executives said, “This is exciting. It’s going to allow us to present an educational view of many of the major elements that go in to making a home green, and show the types of things that the independent inspectors for the Florida Green Building Coalition look for and award points for.”

The Florida Green Building Coalition is the organization in the State that certifies if a home is green, and just how green it is. They work on a points system which designates whether a new construction project receives Bronze, Silver, Gold, or Platinum Certification. Florida Green Homes concentrates on providing home buyers finished houses that have achieved Gold, and preferably Platinum Certification – which represents maximum points earned in every major category. Just one benefit of such focus is up to 70% savings on monthly utility bills. Florida Green Homes achieves its desired results by working closely with the independent inspectors from before the lot is even cleared, through design, construction, and finishing. Only a handful of homes in Central and Northeast Florida have been Certified Platinum; Florida Green Homes counts itself in that exclusive group.

At 25 Emerald Lake Court also will provide visitors the opportunity of seeing a closed roof system, peel’n’stick roofing components, and Icynene®insulation on the underside of the roof and in the interior walls. All these items come together and produce a system within the house that give the home owner more than any one of them could: energy efficiency; sound proofing; hurricane resistance; water proofing; virtually no allergens or other respiratory inflammatories; virtually insect and vermin resistant; fire resistant; mold resistant; and, more.

According to another Florida Green Homes executive, “A Certified green home utilizes power and water resources without waste, is able to withstand the forces of a severe hurricane or other weather event, is fire resistant, is “healthy” due to virtually no allergens/dust/volatile organic compounds, is designated to be of superior construction in the eyes of insurance underwriters, and is in unison with the local environment. We “do green,” and invite everyone to find out about what we’re doing. I want everyone to share in our excitement that in addition to giving our home owners substantial energy savings, every home we build has a minimum impact on natural resources.

Florida Green Homes receive environmental certifications from six different agencies. Over and above the Platinum Certification they strive for from the FGBC, Florida Green Homes has recognition on the Federal level from the Environmental Protection Agency as Indoor Air Plus qualified – healthy to live in housing; as-well-as certified by FPL as BuildSmart,® certified EnergyStar® – Five Stars PLUS ®, certified Florida WaterStar® by the St. John’s River Water Management District, and, of course, Florida Yards & Neighborhoods ® – Florida Friendly Yards by the University of Florida.

It’s Florida Green Homes’ feeling that everyone can afford to live in a Certified Green Home and reap all the benefits such a home offers. They are not just for affluent people, because, now, Florida Green Homes offers three collections – from Luxury to Affordable – so there’s a Certified Green Home for every budget and any taste.

Florida Green Homes’ open forum will run from March 24th through April 2nd. Members of the general public, elected officials, real estate professionals and members of the media are reminded that RSVP’s would be appreciated at 386.447.4151. Following April 2nd, the exterior walls, the roof and the interior walls will be “buttoned-up” and, though the invitation to take advantage of a personal tour of the home at 25 Emerald Lake Court, which is destined to be Certified as a Platinum Green Home be a real Florida home builder, would still be open, it -simply- would not be as educational as it would the ten days prior when all parts and pieces would be fully visible.

10 Florida Green Homes Lawn Care Tips

In Florida, most every one can afford a beautiful green home. The only thing left to the owner is to put an identity to the place. He or she can make it look as desired, whether be it posh, elegant or charming.

It is best to give emphasis to the first part of the house that people will see, the lawn.

Getting the Perfect Lawn

Lawns can come in various types, forms, shapes and sizes. Each lawn has a style and character of its own.

There are lawns that boast of verdant gardens. They can be considered as great works of art and perfect as setting in the Florida environment.

There are some that resemble the old farm style. They are covered with grass and garden of weeds. The greens can be very relaxing and comforting.

Many other lawns can be seen out there that are groomed almost flawlessly. However, no matter what type it is, the most important matter to a lawn owner is to know how exactly to maintain and care for it.

10 Tips to Maintain and Care for the Lawn

Whether in Florida or in any other state, all it takes to keep the lawn beautiful is to maintain and care for it. Here are 10 tips to take into account:

1. Come Up with a Plan

Lawn owners should come up first with a plan. Identify what should be achieved by the project.

Ideally, any plan should be written down. This shall be your guide as you consider the options and endure the various obstacles in your sod endeavors.

Once the plan is laid down, you can easily decide on the other aspects of lawn maintenance. You will know the choices to make to care for your type of lawn.

2. Choose the Plants and Flowers

Plants and flowers should be chosen well. Pick one that will suit best the character you want your lawn to have.

It all depends on your type of landscape and personality. Bushy plants are ideal for those who want some coverage. Colorful flowers are best for people who like to keep it bright.

Be wary also of some plants that may damage your endeavors. Caring for the lawn requires certain caution from plants that can damage the soil or choke other shrubbery.

Dandelions and black medics or the yellow clovers may look good to the eye but their presence can actually affect the alkaline of your soil and even result to deprivation of other plants.

3. Grass It Up

Before planting any grass on your ground, research first on the best one available for your location.

It depends on where you live. There are cool season grasses that are ideal for the northern area and the arm season type that is good for southern plantings.

4. Aerate the Lawn

Aerating the lawn is a must to give a way for fresh air to the small life forms and the microbes under the soil. It also gives water a new course to take, preventing saturation.

Aeration is best done during springtime when the soil is still moisturized and the rains are not yet over.

5. Have the Right Chemistry

To achieve the perfect chemistry for the lawn, people sometimes have to add lime or iron to the soil. Grass ordinarily prefers acidic soil. Lime is perfect to bring down the acidity. Sulfur on the other hand will help increase it.

Seek a professional or an experienced gardener to test the acidity of the soil to know the proper option to take.

6. Use Fertilizer

Grass is one plant that utilizes much nitrogen. Make the soil rich in nutrient. Chemicals are out there but this can disturb the ecosystem of your lawn. Compost is a good way to enrich the soil.

7. Watering the Lawn

Regularly water the lawn to keep the shrubbery healthy. Invest on a watering system. You can choose from a sprinkler system, a hose or simply a gardener who would do the task.

8. Mowing the Lawn

Determine the proper schedule to mow your lawn. It depends on how fast and how thick your greenery grows.

Mowing will help you get rid of old part of the grass. It also encourages a deeper root system for a healthier soil environment.

9. Simply TLC

Of course, never forget to give the tender and loving care to your lawn. With this in mind, you can never go wrong.

10. Enjoy and Be Amazed

A lush and beautiful lawn is the first thing that any neighbor, visitor or a mere passerby will notice in the household. This alone shall speak of the industry and dedication of the owner to the welfare of his or her home.

Thus, the presentation of the lawn is crucial, especially for people living in neighborhoods like in Florida Green Homes where households and residents speak of beauty and good life.

More Florida Green Homes Articles