‘Green home’ campaign

By Jon Thompson

When an independent energy retailer told Stephanie Landon that Ontario was using “brown energy” and she could make her apartment a “certified green home” by getting a “clean energy benefit,” she was eager to hear more.

She opened her door and invited the woman in, assuming she was working for the government. Once inside, the solicitor asked how much Landon was paying for hydro and immediately began filling in paperwork. “She didn’t say where she was from. I said, ‘what are you signing me up for here? I still don’t understand what you’re doing.’ She said, ‘don’t you want to be a certified green home?’ That’s when I realized, ‘you’re selling me something that is totally not legit.’ ”

Landon escorted her out, suggesting she would consult her friends active in the environmental movement and took a business card. Upon reading the document the salesperson for Just Energy left behind, she realized she was being hustled.

The membership agreement left behind included a $75 package for items to reduce costs, then the homeowner would be charged $30 a month for the Green Home Plan on top of the regular electricity billing.

“She didn’t mention signing up for the energy company at all. A lot of people in my building are elderly and I thought if they’re thinking this is something legitimate and valid, this lady was very pushy and persuasive. I thought there could be some definite victims of this scam.”

Kenora MPP, Howard Hampton has been actively discouraging citizens from signing on with independent energy retailers since the deregulation of the electrical and natural gas markets allowed companies to purchase in bulk and sell to consumers in the 1990s. His staff has been helping its constituents to escape contracts and dissuading others from signing on, urging people to challenge what he called aggressive behavior of the salespeople.

“We’ve had seniors come into our office and say ‘this guy came to my house and wouldn’t leave.’ People have said they’re putting their foot in the door, the tactics the door-to-door marketers are using is pretty ugly stuff,” he said. “We work very hard to help people get out of some of these contacts. The energy board, if you put forth rational arguments, will look at them and they’ve overturned several of them. In some cases, the companies have something of an interest in trying to protect their public image and some will voluntarily cancel the contract if there’s a complaint. Others don’t. Others become very hard-edged.”

In 2009, CBC’s Marketplace conducted a hidden camera investigation into the tactics used by such companies and prompted the Ontario Energy Board to fine Universal Energy $60,000, Direct Energy Marketing $15,000 and Summit Energy Management $299,000. The province then passed the Energy Consumer Protection Act requiring door-to-door marketers to wear prominent identification, provide plain language disclosure statements in cost-comparison sheets, and ban automatic renewal. After the story broke, consumers submitted over 10,000 complaints.

Hampton’s constituency assistant, Sarah Campbell regularly travels the riding providing information sessions on companies such as Just Energy, Direct Energy, Summit Energy, and Canada Energy Wholesalers. She said signing on can appear attractive but invisible additions can increase rates by 11 or 12 cents a kilowatt hour.

“They don’t provide any kind of service,” she said. “They even use Hydro One’s billing system and their (hydro) lines. The fixed price the retailers quote you at is not including the global adjustment rate. For regular consumers, this is built into our rates.” Now read more about Green Home in Florida

Written by Lisa Bernard-Kuhn

Green homes

Brett Schneider of WOW Windowboxes installs a window box in one of the townhouse-style homes that are part of the Greenarama home show in Columbia-Tusculum, which begins Friday. / The Enquirer/Carrie Cochran

Brad Olinger, a builder with Pinnacle Custom Building Group, poses in one of the houses that will be part of the Greenarama home show. / The Enquirer/Carrie Cochrans

COLUMBIA TUSCULUM – The region’s first environmentally-minded green home show kicks off Friday featuring seven townhomes in Columbia Tusculum.

Located on Strafer Street, Greenarama 2011 will run through Sunday and open again June 24-26. On Thursday, local Realtors will get a sneak peek inside the homes during a private preview.

Show homes boast energy efficient appliances and operating systems, green designs and the latest products used in sustainable home building. Home prices range from just above $400,000 to more than $500,000. As of Thursday, five homes had been sold.

An eighth, unfinished exhibit home will be open for tours during which attendees can learn about products used during construction and the interior workings of a green home.

Columbia Tusculum was tapped for Greenarama because of its close location to downtown and because many builders involved in the show have built green homes in the neighborhood.

“What’s unique about this is, it’s an environment where you have six competitive builders that are coming together, sharing information and new technologies to promote the green building movement,” said Andrew Riffe, president of Greenarama.

His Hyde Park-based firm Andrew James Builders has built seven green homes elsewhere in Columbia Tusculum.

“All of the builders are very passionate about green building and educating the public,” he said.

Other builders include: Mt. Lookout-based Black Diamond Construction Co.; Anderson Township-based Carroll Customer Builders Inc.; Anderson Township-based Mann Daly Homes, LLC; and Columbia Tusculum-based Pinnacle Custom Building Group, Inc.

Each home is pursuing Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design certification from the U.S. Green Building Council. The program rates and verifies green features inside a home as well as green practices used during construction.

From geothermal heating and cooling units, to decks made of recycled composite materials and high performance insulation that can save up to 50 percent on energy bills, the products and systems featured in each of the show homes are designed to increase energy efficiency and reduce the amount of waste produced during the home’s construction.

In the 2,500 square foot show home built by Pinnacle, the builder included hardwood floors made by Georgia-based Shaw Flooring, which uses 50 percent less newly harvested wood than conventional wood flooring. The flooring includes an inner-core that uses wood fiber by-products that typically are burned or put into landfills in other manufacturing processes.

The builder also included a home electricity management system, called The Energy Detective, which collects real time data on the energy being used in the home which can be reviewed and controlled remotely with a smart phone.

“If you’re in Florida, you can look at your phone and realize that you left some lights on,” said Brad Olinger, a principal at Pinnacle. “You see exactly how much electricity you’re using per hour and what it’s costing you.”

Priced at $439,000, the home has already been sold. It’s the sixth home that Pinnacle has built that is poised to land LEED certification, Olinger said.

“The best part about the LEED program is that it includes (energy efficient) practices that we’ve been using for awhile and verifies their benefits for the homeowner by using a third party,” he said.

Another key component of Greenarama is to raise awareness about the city of Cincinnati’s 15-year property tax abatement for newly built LEED certified homes valued up to $546,000.

In addition to saving on utility bills and maintenance thanks to the energy efficient upgrades for each home, buyers of the Greenarama homes will save in excess of $100,000 over the lifetime of the tax abatement, said James Van Curen of Andrew James Builders.

“It’s a great deal,” he said. “Plus, the tax abatement is transferable to any new buyer if you sell the home within that 15 year-window.”

All told, organizers expect up to 5,000 attendees over the course of the two weekends. Tickets for Greenarama are $10 each, with proceeds going to the Cincinnati Scholarship Foundation. Read also about Green Home in Florida.

Green Home Makeover Sweepstakes

“$25,000 Save Money, Save Energy Green Home Makeover Sweepstakes” connects readers to USGBC’s GreenHomeGuide.com for simple tips and solutions for living greener.

Washington, D.C. – June 8, 2011 – (RealEstateRama) — Today, the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) and Better Homes and Gardens launched the “$25,000 Save Money, Save Energy Green Home Makeover Sweepstakes.” Designed to offer actionable tips and advice for green home living, the sweepstakes will run across the Better Homes and Gardens network of magazines and websites.

“Green building has become a tried and true way to live healthier and conserve resources while saving money, and homeowners are looking for the latest and greatest strategies for creating and maintaining a green home,” said Nate Kredich, VP of Residential Market Development, USGBC. “The sweepstakes provides a platform for offering useful, expert-vetted advice from our GreenHomeGuide.com website to households across the country, while giving readers a chance at winning a cash prize of $25,000.”

Expert advice from GreenHomeGuide.com and Better Homes and Gardens will teach readers everything from ways to cut energy and water consumption, to strategies for improving air quality. A featured tips and product guide describes the various benefits of sustainable living, and how using numerous products from sponsors GAF, Kohler, Lutron, Sherwin-Williams and Teragren can help homeowners meet their green living needs.

“The sweepstakes combines our dedication to providing our 40 million + audience with engaging and  inspiring content for her home and the life she creates there with an opportunity to make homes across the country more healthy,” said Janell Pittman, General Manager BHG.com.

The sweepstakes will run across multiple Better Homes and Gardens branded websites and print publications, including Better Homes and Gardens, Renovation Style, Do It Yourself, Kitchen & Bath Makeovers, Beautiful Kitchens & Baths, and Kitchen Bath Ideas until August 15, 2011. To learn more about green home building and enter to win, visit www.bhg.com/home.

About U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC)
The U.S. Green Building Council is committed to a prosperous and sustainable future for our nation through cost-efficient and energy-saving green buildings. With a community comprising 79 local affiliates, nearly 16,000 member organizations, and more than 166,000 LEED Professional Credential holders, USGBC is the driving force of an industry that is projected to contribute $554 billion to the U.S. GDP from 2009-2013. USGBC leads an unlikely diverse constituency of builders and environmentalists, corporations and nonprofit organizations, elected officials and concerned citizens, and teachers and students. For more information, visit www.usgbc.org, or follow us at www.twitter.com/USGBC or www.facebook.com/OfficialUSGBC.

Better Homes and Gardens
Reaching 39 million readers every month, Better Homes and Gardens is the biggest-selling monthly consumer magazine in America. The Better Homes and Gardens brand extends across the web, tablet, mobile, broadcast, broadband and numerous licensed products, serving and connecting women who are passionate about their homes and the lives they create there. A Meredith publication, Better Homes and Gardens inspires women to dream and gives them the confidence to move from dreaming to doing. For more information, please visit www.bhg.com or go to My Green Home in Florida

Green Home Cleaning

June 1, 2011 (FPRC) — Sarasota, Florida. This week a brand new cleaning service has opened its doors in Sarasota, Florida. Jo Jo’s Cleaning Service specializes in cleaning residential properties, vacation rentals, offices and move in – move out situations.

JoAnn Soloff, founder and president, states, ‘Our mission is to use only biodegradable, non-toxic, eco-friendly, cleaning supplies.

Ms. Soloff also is quoted as saying, ‘Our services are the most friendly and aggravation free of all the cleaning companies available. We are without a doubt the most conscientious green home cleaning service in Sarasota today!’

Jo Jo’s Cleaning Services is dedicated to being a positive influence in the community. Their primary principle is that it is a genuinely green company that keeps toxins out both the clients’ homes, offices and the environment.

This is important because on the average people spend about 90% of their time inside. A little of two thirds of that is spent at home. Those who are most susceptible to indoor conditions are children, the elderly, those with chronic health problems and the elderly. Much of this can be dealt with by employing green cleaning methods.

They customize their home and office cleanings to each specific situation and health need, and utilize only non-toxic, environmentally safe household products that are safe for health, home, and the planet.

Most importantly, they insist that they provide outstanding service to each and every client.

About Jo Jo’s Cleaning Services:

Jo Jo’s Cleaning Services specializes in Residential, Vacation Rentals, Offices, Move In – Move Out. Their emphasis is on using only biodegradable, non-toxic, eco-friendly, cleaning supplies.The most friendly and aggravation free cleaning service in Sarasota, Florida.

Read here also a bout Green Home in Florida

Is Going Green Home Pays Off?

NEWS last week about escalating energy prices is sure to boost the values of existing green homes and commercial premises. According to building advisory service Archicentre, this will lead to a new wave of environmental design, housing products and marketing approaches by the real estate industry. “Home owners with well-designed and insulated homes, including solar panels and rainwater tanks, stand to see hundreds of dollars a year cut from their energy and water bills as prices escalate dramatically,” Archicentre’s David Hallett said. He said the pressure of housing affordability today was not just in initial building costs because housing affordability had spread into the services such as power, water and gas to run a home. “The property market will become increasingly driven by running costs that will be automatically factored in by buyers who are looking at balancing their mortgages and other costs,” he said. He predicted the trend in new homes and renovations was likely to be around the introduction of “quality based building inspections” aimed at ensuring homes with a six or more green star design were actually built to the standard. Mr Hallett said that at present no one checked the quality of the construction or insulation, with the six-star performances quickly evaporating if there were gaps in the door or window seals or poor-quality insulation or the roof was faulty.

CLEARING AIR ON STAMP DUTY

Reductions to stamp duty for first-home buyers don’t come into effect in Victoria until July 1, but it seems it may already be causing some confusion. Our piece a couple of weeks ago about Goodman Group Conveyancing warning about changing contracts until after July 1 drew some comment from several readers, as well as agents. The agents quite rightly pointed out that stamp duty is assessed at the date of settlement, not the date the sale contract is signed – a fact confirmed to Home Truths by the State Revenue Office. The confusion may have come from the fact that eligibility for the $7000 First Home Owners Grant is assessed at the time the contract is signed. So that’s good news for agents, who would be worried the market may be further impacted if first-home buyers stayed away until July. Still, with a stamp duty saving of about $4000 for first-home buyers who settle after July 1, it will not come as any surprise if people who have already bought and settled before July 1 try to stall.

VALUE FOR MONEY As Melbourne’s housing market starts to tighten, valuation company Opteon is urging potential buyers or sellers to have an independent valuation before dipping a toe in the water. Opteon residential operations manager Chris Knight said many buyers were missing out on properties while some sellers were being given conflicting price ranges by agents, particularly on houses located in areas where few sales were recorded. “Often when deciding to buy or sell a home or investment property, people seek the sole advice of real estate agents to guide them on this quest, where in most cases the agent will have a financial motivation to guide their advice to what each party is expecting to hear,” Mr Knight said. He said an independent valuation was impartial and was arrived at by using a variety of methods. Read also about Green Home in Florida