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Posts Tagged ‘environmental sustainability’
Tuesday, August 10th, 2010
“Dear Mrs. Ewing, please remind Sarah that school does not start until 8:00 and she cannot arrive earlier than 7:45” ~ Note to my mom from my kindergarten teacher.
I love back-to-school time! As a child, few things excited me more than crossing items off my school supply list, loading everything into my new backpack, dressing in new clothes, and packing my new lunchbox to head off for the first day of school. It is only in retrospect that I realize my love of school and school supplies had both a financial and an environmental cost. The National Retail Federation surveys indicate that an U.S. family is expected to spend an average of $606 in back to school supplies in 2010. Additionally, the Oregon Resource Efficiency Program estimates that each of the 75.5 million students who attend school will produce up to 240 pounds of waste – or a total of 18.1 billion pounds of waste! That is why one of the greenest things I’ve spied this summer is children getting ready to go back to Earth School!
Although specific Earth Schools that integrate eco-literacy education into all aspects of the curriculum exist, I believe that parents and teachers can transform any school into an Earth School while saving money. The combination of eco-friendly school supplies and curriculum can increase student understanding about how nature impacts life, the current environmental problems, and potential solutions. And many Earth School teachers believe that when students understand these things, they learn how to nurture healthy communities. All it takes is buying in to these back-to-school savings:
For Parents:
- Purchase eco-friendly school supplies and clothes. Just say no to those amazing, but unhealthy for the environment, scented magic markers, and say yes to plant-based and recycled supplies. Yay hemp backpacks! Here is a brief guideline for your school supply list: [1]
| What to Buy |
What To Avoid |
| Recycled paper, refillable pens, tree-free pencils, and scissors made from recycled steel |
Glossy paper, disposable pens, magic markers, and artists’ pastel crayons |
| Cardboard covered notebooks |
Plastic folders and notebooks |
| Water-based paints |
Acrylic paints and scented art products |
| White glue or paste |
Epoxy or instant bonding glues |
| Vegetable or plant-based dyes |
Fiber reactive or commercial dyes |
- But don’t purchase all new school supplies and clothes annually. Okay, so, no new hemp backpack for me this year. You can reduce waste and cost significantly if you keep track of what you already own. For what you do need to purchase, check to see if your state has a sales-tax holiday and do your back-to-school shopping then. 20 states have a sales-tax holiday. For example, Illinois’ sales-tax holiday this week cuts sales tax from 9.75% to 4.5%.
- Pack a green lunch. Bringing a cold lunch can help minimize the amount of plastic preparation for school lunches, provided it is packed in reusable containers. And, although progress is being made in improving school lunch nutrition, packing a green lunch is a fast-track way to achieving the same nutritional goal.
- Walk/bike to the store or shop online. You can not only reduce your carbon footprint but you can also potentially reduce the amount of tax you pay.
For Teachers:
- Encourage non-paper assignment when possible. According to planetgreen.discovery.com, the average school trashes about 38 tons of paper waste each year, which translates to roughly 644 trees. For every ton of paper recycled, 17 trees are saved.
- Assign e-book reading. It reduces paper and saves students money.
- Integrate environmental problems into curriculum. It really can make the environment more relevant. After reading Silent Spring last year, my 14 year-old brother said he learned that, “Everything affects everything somehow. [And] we need to be more wary of the things we put on plants and stuff.”
I’m ready for reading, writing, arithmetic, and the Earth. And this time, I don’t need to wait until 8 a.m. What else can we do to get ready to go back to Earth School?
[1] http://www.phillyburbs.com/news/news_details/article/28/2010/august/09/you-can-help-the-environment-when-going-back-to-school.html
Tags: back-to-school, buy organic, Earth School, environmental sustainability, financial crisis
Posted in Outreach | No Comments »
Tuesday, July 27th, 2010
Have you ever played “I Spy” on a car trip through the Midwest during the summer? It is so hard because not only are your color options minimal but there are also abundant answers to “I spy something green.” Tree? Soybean Field? The road sign? My brother’s pallor after a winding road? The options are still endless! So endless, that I am still constantly keeping an eye out for the greenest solution! Green is my Grandma’s Kansas backyard. Green is a flock of bicyclists. Green is a baby who recycles. Or green is how you survived the summer of 2010 without air conditioning.
ShoreBank Facebook Fan Steve took a really green approach to keeping cool during the East Coast heat wave sans an air conditioner. Steve freecycled his air conditioner 3 years ago. Why? According to Steve, “my wife says that it’s because I’m ecological and she’s cheap. We prefer to say frugal. We think that frugal is choosing to be economical with yourself and cheap is being economical with others. A few years back, the combination of high electricity bills and wanting to green our behavior around the house led us to our experiment of apartment life without AC. We’re in a 4th floor walk-up and it was a real leap of faith. Hot air rises and seems to pool in our little 2 BR unit.”
How does one cope in a heat wave without AC? Steve’s response: wet shirt contest. I thought he was joking. No! Not joking! His family uses the following tactics to make do without the AC:
- Draw heavy curtains. “Sun pouring through windows in a heat wave is not your friend. We draw heavy curtains during the day to reduce the amount of energy heating the inside of our house.”
- Use ceiling fans and window fans to circulate the air. “Window fans these days have multiple settings for drawing in air from outside, sending out air from inside and even exchanging air (one fan blows in and the other simultaneously blows out). Experiment with what cools your place the best.”
- Use wet shirts to keep cool during the day. “Dunk a t-shirt in cold water. Wring it out. Put it on. It’s a little cool and clammy at the outset, but it works on the same principle as sweating. Your body heat is dissipated by working to evaporate the water. It really cools [Steve and his family] off.”
- Use a drying rack for laundry. “It seems to cool the bedroom the same way. Drying the clothes takes heat energy. When our bedroom is hot, hanging the laundry seems to cool it off. (We haven’t experimentally checked the results to see if the temp actually drops, but anything that contributes to the mind-over-matter method is good for us!) A nice bonus is that the drying rack also saves energy and money.”
- Take frozen water bottles to bed. “You might want to wrap it in a hand towel before bedtime or it could give you a puddle of condensation. It really works. A small bit of cool on any one place of your body (torso, neck, etc.) makes your whole body feel cooler.”
I admire Steve’s dedication to not cave to air conditioning convenience and his ability to keep his cool while saving green. We all might not have the ability to save and survive sans air conditioner, but anybody can spot green. And spying a green object or lifestyle like Steve’s could help you win a 6-speed folding bike!
Enter ShoreBank’s “I Spy Something Green: What is the Greenest Thing You’ve Seen This Summer?” 100-150 word micro-essay contest starting August 2, 2010! The winner will receive a Tokyo Citizen 16-inch 6-speed Folding Bike with Ultra-Portable Frame and more. Visit Facebook.com/ShoreBank for contest entry and voting guidelines, rules, and additional information. So get ready, get green, and write a micro-essay! We can’t wait to read about the green things you’ve spied this summer.
Love ShoreBank Voices? Help me tell others that where they bank does make a difference and leave a comment or subscribe to the ShoreBank Voices feed.
Tags: ecological living, environmental sustainability, essay contest, freecycling and being frugal, green lifestyles
Posted in Outreach | 4 Comments »
Tuesday, June 22nd, 2010
“An invitation to a wedding invokes more trouble than a summons to a police court” – in terms of the environment, that is. No matter how eco-friendly my friends and family’s weddings, if I, as a wedding guest, do not take eco-and monetarily conscious steps when attending nuptials, my actions can add to the footprint of even the most eco-friendly planned wedding. How?
1. Wedding guests spend an average of $500 dollars to attend a wedding.
2. The average wedding emits 63 tons of CO2.[1] Who is the biggest contributor to that CO2 emission? Friends and family!
3. Using this calculator I calculated that the 2 weddings I am attending this year will generate 2,895 lbs of CO2 and cost me $1,000.
I do believe we can make our own green wedding attendance plans. Here is a breakdown of where I think I can do to save green and be an eco-friendly guest this wedding season:
Travel Green. As my colleague Karen said in this blog post, look at three different factors when making travel arrangements: how far you are going, what is your vehicle, and, how many people are traveling with you? “If your party has two people and you are traveling 1,000 miles then flying economy beats out driving – the flight creates 835 pounds of CO2 while driving would create 1,125 pounds of CO2.” You might then also consider purchasing the appropriate quantity of carbon offsets ($17.85 will offset my 2,895 lbs of CO2). - Dress Green. Throw caution to the wind and dare to wear something from your current closet, even if other guests have previously seen it. A classic almost always works. (Not to mention the $200 savings you can pocket).
- Stay Green. Share rooms, reduce electricity and air conditioning use, and request your towels to be washed every other day. You can save 1.3 gallons of water daily per room (and even more if you share!)[2]
- Give Green. Make and give an eco-friendly gift. Not only will this reduce your financial and environmental expenditure, but giving an off-registry homemade gift can have greater positive meaning for the newlyweds. (Not crafty? Cash is also a perfectly acceptable green gift.)
- Eat Green. Ask for the vegetarian or the fish option – even if you like meat. In my experience, the veggie option is often prepared individually and tastes better than its companion meat dish. Some research also implies that producing a calorie of meat protein means burning more than ten times as much fossil fuel, and spewing more than ten times as much heat-trapping carbon dioxide, as does a calorie of plant protein.[3]
- Drink Green. Request locally produced beverages on draft, wherever possible. Not only do you minimize packaging and travel, but drinking locally can also provide you with a better cultural flavor of the wedding location.
I believe that everybody, not just the wedding planners, can do their part to generate a greener wedding. Here’s to a happy (green) wedding season.
[1] http://www.examiner.com/x-11943-SF-Green-Weddings-Examiner~y2010m3d31-The-environmental-impact-of-weddings-and-how-to-really-calculate-your-weddings-carbon-footprint
[2] http://www.economicallysound.com/towelsheet_reuse_program_savings.html
[3] http://www.huffingtonpost.com/kathy-freston/vegetarian-is-the-new-pri_b_39014.html
Tags: environmental sustainability, green banking, green transportation, green weddings
Posted in Outreach | 2 Comments »
Tuesday, May 25th, 2010
What does “green” mean to you? A quick poll of attendees at ShoreBank’s Green Festival Chicago booth revealed that the word “green” in the environmental context has no single definition. No wonder why there is such a debate over what is the best and most authentic way to “go green!” But I believe that there is a general theme in all definitions of “green.” I believe that, all definitions of “green” include the general theme of continuous reflection and innovative use of resources to create an improvement for the Earth.
Examine how Green Festival Chicago attendees specifically responded to my question. Responses included:
• “Green” means modifying the way we live so that [future generations] can survive.
• “Green” means utilizing energy to create energy.
• “Green” means only using existing resources that exist above ground.
• “Green” means sustainability.
These definitions all require an innovation of what currently exists in order to create an improvement for our planet.
According to my fellow blogger and Senior Vice President of Energy Finance, Joel Freehling, “green” for ShoreBank isn’t just about having the greenest branches (although this week is “Growing Green Branches” week for ShoreBankers). “Green” is also a suite of actions ShoreBank takes to help our customers be the most responsible they can be, within the constraints that govern their lives.
When asked what “green” meant to him, ShoreBank Facebook Fan and “What does ‘green’ mean to you?” photo contest winner, Adam Thada took this picture that shows even just removing one bottle can improve the Earth.
But what ‘green’ means to me is just one opinion. What does ‘green’ mean to you?
Tags: environmental sustainability, Green Festival
Posted in Outreach | No Comments »
Tuesday, April 20th, 2010
One of the sad truths about urban life is that we often do not know our neighbors well. Yet, our neighbors are working diligently to make our neighborhoods better places to live and work!
Each Earth Day, ShoreBank recognizes one of the unsung heroes in our community by presenting an award to a customer that exemplifies ShoreBank’s approach to sustainable development. Deemed “The Green Neighbor Award,” recipients are nonprofit organizations that promote environmental sustainability in urban neighborhoods, while also catalyzing job growth, community empowerment, and economic inclusion.
This year’s winner is the Resource Center, a nonprofit offering recycling services to neighborhoods throughout the city. Led by long-time Executive Director, Ken Dunn, the organization has pioneered ways to transform trash into economic opportunity for low wealth communities.
To use the organization’s own words, “For 35 years, the Resource Center, a non-profit environmental education organization, has led the way in demonstrating innovative techniques for recycling and reusing materials. Too often in the urban setting, abundant and important resources are wasted. In our recovery work we aim to reverse waste and to improve the quality of life for urban dwellers. We have been devoted from the beginning to the economic and educational revitalization of city neighborhoods through recycling, urban gardening, composting, and other programs that reclaim and reuse resources.”
But, as Earth Day’s 40th anniversary approaches, it is also important to realize how important ShoreBank’s (and your) support is to our green neighbors. When Resource Center needed a working capital loan, following a collapse in the price of aluminum, paper, and glass, it had few alternatives. As a nonprofit, it was ineligible for an SBA loan or any of the other governmental loan programs that support lending to small businesses. ShoreBank, however, offers a novel lending program that enabled the Resource Center to obtain the necessary financing, preserving 23 green collar jobs and ensuring that 14,000,000 pounds of waste continued to be recycled annually.
With commodity prices now largely recovered, the Resource Center is again expanding its services, adding to its payroll, and helping to grow the green (neighborhood) economy. Thanks to green neighbors like the Resource Center, Earth Day is sure to be a beautiful day in the neighborhood.
Tags: environmental sustainability, green banking, green jobs, green neighbor award, recycling tactics, urban gardens
Posted in Green Collar | 2 Comments »
Tuesday, April 13th, 2010
I am a proud non-car owner. My family is even taking bets to see how long I will last sans a car. Now, I am fortunate that ShoreBank participates in SASI, which deducts my public transportation costs from my pre-tax salary. But not everybody is as lucky. Just as car owners receive an “alternative motor” tax credit for replacing their vehicles with new eco-friendly ones (and therefore, for positively impacting the economy and environment), why shouldn’t more people receive a financial incentive for not owning a car? I propose that by not owning a car and by taking alternative forms of transportation, people are creating a triple bottom line impact in the following ways:
Financial:
- Generating more disposable income. For people like me, whose savings rates rarely increases, the greater your disposable income, the more you spend can (and I know that I do!) spend locally.
- Saving time (and time equals money). When I lived in San Francisco, I calculated that it would take me the same amount of time to get to the commuter shuttle stop to Silicon Valley via foot as it would via bus. By walking 4 miles every day for a year, I saved $540.
- Increasing local business activity and employment from foot traffic. It is much easier to just duck into an interesting shop if you don’t have to find parking!
- Creating health cost savings from the exercise we get from walking, even if just to another form of transportation. Walking has saved me $1,300 on a gym membership.
Community:
- Decreasing external transportation costs by not contributing to car emissions, noise pollution, and potholes (and the fixing of them!), etc.
- Improving community cohesion – the quality of relationships among people in a community among people of different economic classes and social backgrounds. Running into the same people on the street or waiting for the bus makes my urban Chicago neighborhood feel like my small Missouri hometown (as if to emphasis that point, I really did sit across from a girl I went to high school with in MO on the bus to my Chicago apartment).
Environment:
- Reducing energy consumption and pollution emissions.
- Lowering “heat island” effects, including air condition costs, heat-related illness and mortality, and water quality. “Heat Island” describes how the annual mean air temperature of a city with 1 million people or more can be 1.8–5.4°F (1–3°C) warmer than its surroundings.
We really can make a big impact by not owning a car. But more people may need financial incentives to go “non-car owner”. Being a non-car owner is what ‘green’ means to me.
This is my picture for ShoreBank’s “What does ‘Green’ mean to me” photo contest. What does ‘Green’ mean to you? Take a photo and enter it in our contest starting April 22! It is time for us to give you your green credit.
Love ShoreBank Voices? Help me tell others that where they bank does make a difference and leave a comment or subscribe to the ShoreBank Voices feed blog.sbk.com/feed.
Tags: environmental sustainability, green transportation, tax credits, triple bottom line
Posted in Outreach | No Comments »
Tuesday, March 23rd, 2010
Water, water, everywhere; nor any drop to drink! Annie Leonard’s recent The Story of Bottled Water highlights the global impact that bottled water has on the global economy. She, like many, discusses the financial, health, and environmental impacts of bottled water; however, what many overlook is the impact that bottled water could have on our own public water supply? It might be one more reason why you might consider giving up bottled water.
A 2009 E.P.A. study estimated that we need $335 billion to maintain America’s tap water system in coming decades. Why? Although we starting using plastic water pipes approximately 30 years ago, over one million miles of 50-100 year-old iron pipes (often prone to rust and leaks) still transport our water. With a major leak occurring on average every two minutes somewhere in this country, these leaks add up to really negatively impact a cities’ budget, your health, and the global economy. Although the State of Illinois expects to distribute over $110 million in Public Water Supply Loans in 2010 to fix our public water infrastructure, maybe we can make more of an impact just by giving up bottled water.
Now, there are many reasons why you might choose to or not to drink bottled water in the United States. You might need something easily transportable; you want something with additives, like flavor or nutritional supplements; you suspect a health issue; or perhaps it is provided for you.
Regardless of the ‘why,’ and excluding the additional negative environmental impact created by water bottle products and the water bottle alternatives, consider this fact – bottled water costs $0.08/oz. (assuming $1.50/20 oz.); whereas tap water costs less than $0.01/oz. (which you already pay for). 2007 stats indicate that Americans annually spent $324 on those $1.50 20-oz. bottles. Can you imagine what would happen we all donated $324 to an organization focused on improving water supply infrastructure in the U.S.? The city of Chicago alone would free up $938 million in foregone bottled water costs (using 2000 Census population data)! That is 8.5 times the amount of Public Water Supply Loans the State of Illinois plans on creating. Think of the jobs and water supply improvements that would create while minimizing negative environmental impacts.
It is a win-win situation and all it takes is giving up bottled water. Consider it.
Sources:
Tags: energy conservation loans, environmental sustainability, ShoreBank, water conservation, world water day
Posted in Outreach | 1 Comment »
Tuesday, February 16th, 2010
Although landlords are ultimately responsible for a building’s energy efficiency, there are a number of steps which environmentally-friendly renters, some of whom pay their own utility bills, can take to reduce energy costs and consumption. So I am going to share with you some of the easy and convenient steps that we share with our ShoreBank customers and encourage building owners to pass along to their tenants.
*P.S. Many of the tips also apply to anyone owning or inhabiting a home, apartment, or condo.
1. Turn off unused lights and computers and replace incandescent light bulbs with compact fluorescent bulbs (CFLs).
2. Caulk and weather-strip windows and outside doors. For older windows, place a sheet of plastic over them and use two-way tape to affix it. The greatest source of heat loss in a home comes from the windows.
3. Remember to use the storm windows which help insulate the home and keep heat inside it.
4. Keep your drapes open in the winter to let sunlight naturally warm the room and home. And in the summer, keep them closed to prevent the place from getting too warm.
5. For each degree lower or higher you set the thermostat, you will save potentially two to 10 percent on heating or cooling costs. In the winter, keep the temperature set at 68 degrees during the day and 55 in the evening. Wearing a sweater or layered clothing will make the temperature more tolerable, especially on days when the bill arrives in the mail.
6. Clean the coils on the back of the refrigerators which contribute to about 15 percent of the total monthly electrical bill. This can help persuade your landlord to finally get around to replacing the old one with an ENERGY STAR model.
7. Get an electric blanket. Besides the joy and comfort that comes from getting into a bed at night with warm sheets, it is less expensive than heating your bedroom.
8. Move your furniture away from the exterior walls to create space between you and the cold walls. This will make space for the air to move around, making the air warmer.
9. Keep your radiator and heating vents clean from dust. Dust and dirt prevents heat from flowing into the rooms where you need it. It’s “no fun” to clean, but being cold and paying more for it can be even more painful.
10. Select ENERGY STAR appliances and products, and check efficiency ratings prior to purchasing.
Whether you own or rent, energy efficiency is everyone’s concern. Please share this information with friends, family and / or your landlord. It might even help some renters get a faster response to a lingering maintenance issue when the building owner understands how it will reduce their monthly costs while adding comfort and value to the property.
In fact many of the improvements are eligible for tax deductions and may help lower income taxes. With the April tax deadline fast approaching, I will explore the tax benefits of buying a home and incorporating energy saving improvements in your 2009 tax return in my next blog entry.
For additional energy saving information, visit the U.S. Department of Energy’s website.
Tags: community development, energy efficiency, environmental sustainability, green banking, green building, ShoreBank, triple bottom line
Posted in Mortgage Lending | No Comments »
Tuesday, October 27th, 2009
Most banks offer their customers the option of banking online in addition to writing paper checks and conducting transactions at brick-and-mortar branches. However, at ShoreBank we see online banking as more than a way to provide convenient banking options (though it certainly does that). We also see it as an integral component of our commitment to the environment and our position as a triple bottom line institution.
The environmental impact of paperless, electronic banking should not be underestimated. We’re talking about more than the occasional four-by-two inch ATM receipt. For example, Greendig.net estimates that if every household in the U.S. switches to electronic banking, it would save 16.5 million trees each year. That’s paper for envelopes, paper for stamps, paper for checks…all being saved.
Many customers also seem specifically attracted to the green aspects of paperless banking. In 2008, Newsweek reported that 57% of U.S. consumers expressed an interest in green banking when polled about it.
ShoreBank has always seen its environmental commitment as integrally connected to its community development mission. For example, supporting businesses like Indie Energy—a company that designs and builds environmentally-friendly, renewable energy systems throughout the Chicago region— creates jobs for people in the community while making their homes more energy efficient and affordable. By encouraging energy-efficiency whether by financing a green business or providing homeowners with free energy-audits—ShoreBank is helping homeowners lower their utility bills and tackle global warning by working to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Want to learn more? One easy-to-use tool for gaining a better understanding of the link between environmental and economic community development can be found on our new website, https://www.sbk.com/. It’s a fully-functional bank website with state-of-the-art technologies to make it easier to manage your money. It also has stories that will engage you in ShoreBank’s mission. Now you can manage your finances and build wealth while seeing, through customer stories, how we are building stronger, healthier communities and reinvigorating the lives of our customers.
So I am encouraging you to browse https://www.sbk.com to help “put a face” onto the opportunities and people we work with —both through online and good old fashioned brick-and-mortar banking. I think you’ll enjoy learning more and hope from these stories you will either begin or continue supporting ShoreBank in its mission.
Tags: community development, environmental sustainability, green banking, ShoreBank, socially responsible investing, triple bottom line
Posted in Green Collar | 2 Comments »
Tuesday, August 18th, 2009
Despite current economic conditions, low interest rates, upbeat economic reports, and government incentives are making this one of the best housing markets in decades. Whether you’re a first-time homeowner looking to take advantage of the available $8,000 tax credit before it expires at the end of Nov. 2009, or looking to downsize or to upgrade, now is a terrific time to buy a home.
One lesson many people have learned all too well lately is the importance of knowing how to buy a home responsibly to ensure successful, sustainable home ownership. To help you buy a new home and make the best use of your money, I am sharing with you some home buying information and advice.
Begin by having a plan.
Don’t act immediately. Think about what you want – the type of home and the neighborhood – and what you can manage at this point in your life. How will a mortgage figure into your retirement plans or payment for the children’s education? Think about how your cash flow may change in the future. Talk to a mortgage lending specialist very early in the process who is familiar with the community and who can help assess your needs, calculate costs and determine what you can afford.
Then choose a manageable “standard vanilla,” fixed-rate loan and payment schedule that fits your goals. And perhaps, most importantly, ask a lot of questions and be sure you fully understand the terms of your loan.
Be conservative.
Equity is the difference between the appraised value of the home and the debt or current loan balance on the home. It is important to have realistic expectations of what the appraised dollar amount is when you are pricing your home for sale. You may qualify for a large loan and find you can’t easily handle the payments because the actual sale price of your home was much less than its appraised value. As I like to say, “Hope for the best, but don’t count on the best,” and borrow only what you need and can afford to repay.
Make a difference.
Maybe the house you have your eye has been vacant and needs some work—the paint is peeling, the floors and cabinets are dull or cracked, or the kitchen needs new appliances. Renovations on any scale are an opportunity to get exactly what you want and increase your home’s value, which in turn strengthens the neighborhood.
But be sure to look at more than just the “carpet and the fixtures” because there are other parts of the home whose repairs can be very expensive. It’s important to ask yourself: Can I afford repairs that may be needed in the first year—the next year? Therefore, I remind you, don’t be afraid to ask questions about the condition of the home while shopping for a home. To avoid “costly surprises,” here are some questions to ask:
- Does the home have insulation in the walls, crawl space and attic? Losing heat and letting in the cold is inefficient;
- How old is the roof? Asphalt and wood lasts about 20 years, and clay is the most expensive to replace and repair;
- Has the heating, cooling, and hot water equipment been updated? Usually the older it is, the less efficient it is; look for the ENERGY STAR label for efficiency;
- And what type of material was used for the exterior siding? Was it properly maintained? Can I afford to maintain it because each material, albeit, wood, vinyl and brick, require different maintenance needs, such as cleaning, painting or mortar re-pointing?
There are a wide-array of loans in the marketplace designed to help rehab and purchase a new home. Look for loans, like the ShoreBank Home Energy Conservation Loan, that offer a free energy audits.
The energy saving improvements can reduce your monthly utility bill by 25 to 45 percent while increasing the home’s appraised resale value, sometimes in the neighborhood of 15 percent. In addition, they reduce the amount of greenhouse gas emissions that harm the environment. In fact, our nation’s homes contribute one-third of all green house gas emissions, or roughly the same amount emitted by autos and commercial buildings.
My next blog will share with you some suggested low-cost, eco-friendly home improvements that will add value and comfort to any home. In the meantime, if you have any questions about responsibly buying a home and obtaining a quality, affordable mortgage, please send me an email.
Tags: community development, environmental sustainability, green banking, home affordability and stability plan, home ownership, ShoreBank, triple bottom line
Posted in Mortgage Lending | No Comments »
