DV Wise homes save you energy and money

Coal-fired electrical plants and other energy-producing and industrial manufacturing facilities, mostly built in the 1960s when “environmental stewardship” wasn’t in the mainstream lexicon, may actually hold the keys to the next generation of clean energy: waste heat.

Energy experts, from government agencies to university research programs and private companies, estimate that up to two-thirds of the heat generated by the creation of energy (e.g., fuels such as coal burned to generate electricity) dissipates into the air via smokestacks and other vents—a waste stream that also includes carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas.

Capturing that heat and either recycling it into a facility’s operation or putting it back into the power grid, however, has the potential to offset more energy consumption than renewables such as solar or wind power. According to the EPA, comprehensive waste-heat recycling from industrial, municipal, and agricultural uses would equal the energy generated by nearly 70 nuclear power plants.

Several solutions are emerging, including semiconductors that convert ambient heat from a steam or waste pipe into electricity to models such as the Green Machine by Nevada-based ElectraTherm that uses pressurized waste heat and a small turbine to recycle energy to the grid. Designed to scale up or down depending on the facility and amount of waste heat, the system can cost up to $200,000 per unit (other industrial waste-heat systems can be up to 100 times that) and returns its investment within five years, according to the company—perhaps less given applicable tax credits and utility rebates.

By:Rich Binsacca

www.dvwise.com

 “Today’s numbers are an encouraging sign that new-home sales are coming back from an expected slow period that followed the expiration of the home buyer tax credit program,” said Bob Jones, chairman of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) and a home builder from Bloomfield Hills, Mich. “While we still have quite a way to go on the path to recovery, it’s good to see that we are headed in the right direction.”

 “It’s worth noting that some of the new-home sales in June were due to move-up buyers who were able to sell their previous home to a tax-credit-eligible buyer while that program was active,” said NAHB Chief Economist David Crowe. “Also, while sales activity is still far from robust, it has picked up some momentum as positive factors such as historic low mortgage rates, great selection and attractive prices help draw potential home buyers back to the market. We anticipate that this momentum will continue along with a gradually improving economy, although other factors such as a critical lack of production financing remain a drag on housing’s recovery.”

Sales of new homes rose strongly in three out of four regions in June. The largest percentage increase was the Northeast’s 46.4 percent gain, followed by a 33.1 percent gain in the South and a 20.5 percent gain in the Midwest. The West was the only region where new-home sales did not improve in June, instead falling 6.6 percent to a new record low.

Meanwhile, the nationwide inventory of new homes for sale declined to 210,000 in June, the thinnest it has been since September of 1968. This amounts to a 7.6 months’ supply at the current sales pace.

Source:  NAHB

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But the housing shortage in Watertown is prompting soldiers to take more risks when they see a house for rent online. An elaborate scheme of fake rentals on the Watertown Craigslist website has cost Ms. Armwood $3,300.

The civilian community also is being affected. Houses being listed for sale on reputable websites are being copied onto Craigslist — with unsuspecting homeowners suddenly finding people at their door telling them they have “rented” their house.

Lance M. Evans, executive director of the Jefferson-Lewis Board of Realtors, has seen housing scams on Craigslist consistently for the past year and a half.

“There doesn’t seem to be a rhyme or reason,” he said. “It just seems to continue to happen.”

Soldiers are at a higher risk of becoming victims because they sometimes have short time frames and a long distance from which to make arrangements, he said.

“The higher the transient population, the more likely it is that it will hurt,” Mr. Evans said.

As part of normal duty-station cycles, soldiers from across the nation and now deployed in Afghanistan and Iraq are making their way to the north country. The intense scramble to find housing led to Ms. Armwood being scammed.

The first sergeant is in the process of retiring and coming to town this month with her boyfriend — who preferred not to be named — from Fort Hood, Texas.

“They know we have to come there and we have to find housing,” Ms. Armwood said. “I’ve never seen anything this bad.”

The problem has come to the attention to the state attorney general’s office.

“We are aware of the issue, but we can’t comment on any potential investigations,” an office spokesman said.

Craigslist is a popular online classified ad service that allows people to post ads almost immediately for free in most U.S. locations, including Watertown.

The site is regulated not by paid moderators, but by the public. Users are expected to “flag” content they believe to be inappropriate, illegal or false.

The site carries ads for many services, including an “adult” services section. South Carolina’s attorney general is investigating Craigslist for aiding prostitution. On Friday, a federal judge threw out a lawsuit filed by Craigslist against the state’s attorney general.

News stories of housing scams on Craigslist and other sites are easy to find nationwide. Users commonly warn others of scams within the housing sections.

Ms. Armwood browsed Craigslist posts in late July and responded to a promising housing ad.

She checked Google’s satellite and street views of the address and contacted the people who posted the ad.

The potential landlord gave her a name, which matched what the register of deeds had on file.

“We really thought we’ve taken all the steps with verifying the name,” she said.

She spoke to her potential landlord twice on the phone and corresponded through e-mail. The person even spoke to Ms. Armwood about the storms Watertown was experiencing that week.

It all seemed to check out, she said.

She sent her three cashier’s checks for $1,100 each — first and last month’s rent plus a deposit.

Then she started calling about connecting the utilities. They were already turned on for another family.

Ms. Armwood called the “landlord” and the phone was disconnected. She sent an e-mail, and immediately received a default error response saying the e-mail address didn’t exist.

She then knew the situation she was in.

“That money’s gone,” she said.

She doubts she will ever see it again, but she filed a report with the Watertown Police Department. She said she also is relieved she realized the offer was fake before moving her belongings.

“We would have gotten up there thinking there was a house we were going to,” she said.

Local homeowners trying to sell their houses online have unknowingly become part of the scam.

Watertown resident Shari L. Scott has had her house listed on Craigslist for sale since June and, in the manner consistent to what Mr. Evans has seen, her house was posted by an unknown person as a rental.

About four people have come to her Sunset Ridge home asking about the ad. One would-be renter forwarded Ms. Scott an e-mail with her name in the signature block.

“My name and address is out there associated with this scam,” Ms. Scott said.

The message claimed she was working in Africa for the U.S. Agency for International Development and urged a reply so the sender could supply an application.

In the last week, two military families drove up to ask about the house.

“I felt so sorry for them,” she said. They were both “young families looking for a place to live.”

The families avoided that particular scam because they had the luxury of being able to see the house in person.

A safety page — visible above Craigslist’s housing listings — warns against sending money. The page claims that if potential renters can “deal locally with folks you can meet in person,” they will avoid 99 percent of scams attempted on Craigslist.

Ms. Scott flagged the ad as “prohibited” and e-mailed the company.

She hasn’t seen the ad since.

San Francisco-based Craigslist did not return repeated requests for comment left Thursday and Friday.

Mr. Evans said that many reliable companies post online and potential renters should confirm their existence with the local board of Realtors or the chamber of commerce. He also advised to look at newspaper websites, which he said are more reliable.

By Daniel Woolfolk, Watertown Daily Times, N.Y.

www.watertowndailytimes.com.

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Government-sponsored mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday the average rate for 30-year fixed loans this week was 4.57 percent. That’s the same as a week earlier and the lowest since Freddie Mac began tracking rates in 1971.

The last time home loan rates were lower was the 1950s, when most mortgages lasted just 20 or 25 years.

Rates have fallen since the spring. Investors, concerned with the European debt crisis, have poured money into the safety of Treasury bonds. Treasury yields have fallen and so have mortgage rates, which tend to track yields on U.S. debt.

However, low rates have yet to fuel home sales and have sparked only a modest increase in refinancing activity.

The housing market has slowed since federal tax credits for homebuyers expired at the end of April. And the latest decline in mortgage rates is unlikely to boost the market.

Mortgage rates have hovered near record lows for some time, so most people who can afford to buy homes or qualify to refinance their loans have already done so in the past 18 months. Doing so again wouldn’t be worth the cost for most.

Meanwhile, millions of Americans are unable to take advantage of the low rates. Many have seen the value of their homes plummet and have little or no equity. Or they lack good credit or steady income to get or refinance a mortgage.

Rates could go lower and still not budge the housing market, analysts say. That’s because a person without a job can’t afford a home and a person worried about losing their job is unlikely to do so either.

To calculate the national average, Freddie Mac collects mortgage rates on Monday through Wednesday of each week from lenders around the country. Rates often fluctuate significantly, even within a given day.

Rates on 15-year fixed-rate mortgages decreased to an average of 4.06 percent, down from 4.07 percent last week. Rates on five-year adjustable-rate mortgages averaged 3.85 percent, up from 3.75 percent a week earlier.

Rates on one-year adjustable-rate mortgages fell to an average of 3.74 percent from 3.75 percent.

The rates do not include add-on fees known as points. One point is equal to 1 percent of the total loan amount. The nationwide fee for all types of loans in Freddie Mac’s survey averaged 0.7 a point.

by Alan Zibel,  AP

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DV Wise builds custom homes in the Lake Norman NC region

A product is only as sustainable as the sum of its parts. In the case of cabinetry, there are quite a few parts to add up.

When selecting cabinetry for a green-built home, dedicated research is required to break the products down and evaluate the origins of the wood used to make the raw materials, the resins that bind them, the chemical content of the glues used to adhere the parts together, and the VOC levels of finishes. 

Raw Materials

The base components of most wood cabinetry today are made with hardwood plywood, MDF, or particleboard. While these materials are more resource efficient than solid wood, manufacturing them historically has involved formaldehyde-laden resins; the high formaldehyde content off-gassing from some man-made materials creates health concerns, according to the Healthy House Institute, especially for people with chemical sensitivities.

Several major manufacturers of composite wood panels, including Timber Products and Columbia Forest Products, have already been working with resin manufacturers and refining their manufacturing processes to create no-added-formaldehyde (NAF) or no-added-urea-formaldehyde (NAUF) products. Columbia’s PureBond NAUF plywood, for example, utilizes a soy-based adhesive.

“The formaldehyde levels of [composite] products have come down dramatically over the past 10 years,” says Dick Titus, executive vice president of the Kitchen Cabinet Manufacturers Association (KCMA).

Helping the push are the most recent emissions requirements from the California Air Resources Board (CARB); once phase two of the rules begin in 2012, they will be the strictest regulations in the world. Though the laws are specific to the Golden State, most panel manufacturers and cabinet companies are changing over their stock across the country. There is also speculation that similar emissions regulations may be adopted at the federal level.

In addition to CARB compliance, some composite panels may carry the Composite Panel Association’s Environmentally Preferable Product (EPP) certification, which verifies formaldehyde emissions lower than government regulations and the use of recycled and/or recovered wood fiber.

Indeed, along with formaldehyde, consider the resource origins of the wood panels for recycled content (some certified by Scientific Certification Systems) and/or for sustainable harvesting as verified by the Forest Stewardship Council or the Sustainable Forestry Initiative, among others. Certified products may carry a slight price premium.

Finally, you’ll also need to examine the woods that make up the veneers and solid wood trim, doors, and drawer fronts. Austin Energy Green Building’s Sustainable Building Sourcebook recommends domestic hardwoods or certified, sustainably harvested tropical hardwoods as the most environmentally sound choices. “Veneer-grade domestic softwoods are often harvested from old growth timber, and non-certified tropical hardwoods are too often harvested in a manner that is devastating to the forest,” the group advises.

And, be sure to enquire about the chemical content of the glues used to adhere the veneers to the cabinet box; non-solvent-based adhesives can be comparable in performance and cost, Austin Energy says.

Alternative Materials
Though traditional composite wood panels dominate, alternatives exist that offer their own environmental benefits or trade-offs.

Solid wood is one option that will eliminate formaldehyde concerns, but it lacks the materials efficiency of an engineered product, is fairly rare, and is more expensive.

Weyerhaeuser makes composite panels using Lyptus, a Brazilian-grown wood that can be harvested for lumber in 14 to 16 years. Like bamboo, another cabinetry alternative, Lyptus offers the benefits of rapid renewability but does have to be shipped a longer distance. Wheatboard, made from waste stalks, is another option gaining attention.

As with traditional composite panels, ensure alternative engineered materials you select utilize formaldehyde-free resins.

Though more rare here, some metal cabinets can be a green selection from both a resources and health standpoint. For example, St. Charles Cabinetry says its metal options contain more than 70 percent recycled material and are 98 percent recyclable; the products’ baked-on powdercoat finish is considered hypoallergenic.

Finishes
Though low-VOC finishes are becoming more readily available, they’re not yet widespread due to concerns that are similar to those made during the transition to healthier paints: The quality and richness aren’t always equivalent and the application may be unfamiliar.

Still, the options have come a long way and you should enquire with your supplier about what they have available. For instance, Crystal Cabinetry offers a Valspar ULF topcoat that is Greenguard Indoor Air Quality certified.

Managing buyer expectations is key, as popular high-sheen finishes are harder to get in a low-VOC formula, and some natural-based products may have a slightly different look.

Reuse and Recycle
For remodelers, the greenest choice would be to protect and salvage as much of the existing cabinetry as possible. Refacing is one option, although the same questions need to be asked about the new adhesives and finishes.

At the very least, consider repurposing discarded cabinetry for the garage, workroom, or other lower-profile spaces.

There aren’t many options for recycling cabinetry, since veneers and finishes make separation difficult. Before trashing unwanted pieces, explore local options for donation, such as to a Habitat Restore, or consider listing the materials on Craigslist or Freecycle.

Putting It All Together
With the many components that need exploring, it’s easy to get bogged down by the product selection process.

The KCMA’s Environmental Stewardship Program (ESP) aims to ease some of the burden by recognizing manufacturers who meet requirements in five key areas: air quality, product resource management (wood origins and content), process resource management (manufacturing processes), environmental stewardship (including documentation of environmental quality commitment), and community relations. Manufacturers must earn points in all five areas to qualify.

About 140 brands—70 percent of the U.S. cabinet market—are certified under the program, says Titus.

To meet the ultra-green needs of his buyers, Texas builder and remodeler Don Ferrier works with custom cabinet shops. Though it takes a lot of legwork and documentation, this control ensures the products going into his tightly built homes won’t negatively affect indoor air quality.

Kati Curtis, ASID, LEED AP, of Nirmada Interior Architecture and Design in New York City, also relies on the control custom shops provide. It requires hand-holding at first to help them find and become familiar with new materials, she says, but they learn quickly and costs come back down.

Customers also begin to come around: “When it goes in and there’s no smell, and they understand it, then they see the value,” says Curtis.

Expect other buyers to follow. “With new generations of buyers in the market,” says Roger Rutan, vice president of sales and marketing at Timber Products, “you’re going to see a difference in demand for cabinetry that will fundamentally change the shape and look of the marketplace.”

by Katy Tomasulo, Deputy Editor for EcoHome.

www.dvwise.com

DV Wise Inc is a Certified Green Professional Builder

NAHB has petitioned the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to rethink a new “interpretive rule” that changes the accepted definition of a showerhead and limits the usefulness of additional hand-held devices designed to improve a shower’s accessibility for the elderly or disabled.

With the new interpretation, the allowable gallons-per-minute flow applies to the entire shower stall, rather than individual showerheads.

“DOE said the change is intended to improve water efficiency, which is a goal we support. Unfortunately, the solution goes too far,” said NAHB Chairman Bob Jones.

“Most people want to stay in their homes as they get older, so it’s very important to be able to identify and then remove any barriers within the home that can restrict these older home owners’ ability to live independently,” Jones said. “Modifying a traditional shower stall with a single showerhead by adding a flexible hose is one such improvement.”

Similar modifications — included in NAHB’s Certified Aging-in-Place Specialist (CAPS) designation — are also helpful for the disabled or others who take seated showers.

Created in partnership with AARP, CAPS provides a curriculum and educational designation for remodelers and designers serving the “baby boomer” population. More than 4,000 housing professionals have now earned the designation.

Under DOE’s proposed definition, a shower with two showerheads — each with fully pressure-controlled and anti-scald control valves and individual shutoffs that are easily accessible from both inside and outside the shower stall — would not work effectively under the new definition because the total amount of water pressure would have to be split between the two heads.

The rule potentially bans the installation of spa-style showers and similar features popular with many new home buyers — limiting consumer choice, but not necessarily saving water.

“DOE would have to come up with a ruling regarding the number of showers people are allowed to take and how many minutes they can last — and I don’t think the agency is prepared to go that far, for good reason,” Jones added.

“Had the agency gone through the typical notice-and-comment process in which manufacturers, suppliers, builders and consumers have an opportunity to review and offer suggestions for improvement — DOE might have addressed these concerns in a more equitable and informed manner,” Jones said.

DOE may review comments submitted by NAHB, plumbing and fixture firms and other advocacy groups, but it is not required to consider them in its final decision.

Source: NAHB

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DV Wise builds dreams of all sizes

Spring is typically the season when people shop for houses. Many families like to complete their home purchase by the end of the summer so as to not uproot their children during the school year. And let’s face it: houses just look more enticing when flowers are out. But the real estate bust and economic downturn have made the past few housing hunting seasons rather slow. Some buyers have waited on the sidelines hoping prices had further to drop.
This year looks to be different. Already, falling interest rates, an improving economy and a last bit of economic stimulus are helping the housing market stage a revival. In April alone, sales of existing homes jumped 23% from a year ago, according to the trade organization National Association of Realtors. Sales of new homes rose even faster, up 48% from a year ago. What’s more, a growing number of economists believe the three-year plunge in housing prices is at an end. (See pictures of Americans in their homes.)
“Units, volume and sales price are up on all fronts,” says real estate broker Todd Hetherington, who is based in Alexandria, Va. “Houses that are priced well are getting multiple offers in the first week.”
For now, though, housing prices, like everything else, remain rocky. According to the S&P/Case-Shiller nationwide index, home prices fell 3.2% in the first quarter of 2010, down from the already low levels where they stood at the end of 2009. And home prices may stay down for a little longer. The continued recent slide in the stock market is hurting consumer confidence and likely to make some people pause before buying a house. Foreclosures aren’t helping the housing market either. The government’s home-loan-modification programs have helped keep a relatively small amount of home owners out of foreclosure. But more repossessed homes are now starting to land on the market, driving up the number of houses for sale and holding down prices. In addition, some economists are concerned that the expiration of an $8,000 tax credit for homebuyers, which essentially ended in April, will hurt home sales. Indeed, the Mortgage Bankers Association said last week mortgage applications for new home purchases fell to the lowest level since 1997. Lastly, mortgage credit remains tight, making it hard for some prospective home buyers to qualify for a loan. (See high-end homes that won’t sell.)
“We think the tax credit has dragged a lot of house sales forward, and we think we are going to pay for it,” says Jay Brinkmann, the chief economist for the Mortgage Bankers Association. He expects home sales to drop 5% in the fall of 2010.
Nonetheless, a growing number of economists believe this spring could end up being the start of a sustained rebound in the housing market. The biggest driver of that rebound will likely be interest rates. Though rates were expected to rise this summer, the continuing problems in Europe are driving down rates in the U.S., which is still seen as a safe haven for investors. The result is that mortgage rates have fallen to their lowest point in a year and are expected to continue to drop through the summer. In general, for every percentage-point decline in mortgage rates, houses effectively become 10% cheaper.
A recent study of 92 economists by financial-products firm MacroMarkets found that on average housing prices are expected to drop slightly in 2010 and begin rising again next year. That means that for the first time in years someone who buys a house this spring will most likely see their home appreciate in the next year. And rising housing prices, just like falling ones, tend to feed on themselves.
“Low interest rates will be a powerful incentive,” says William Hummer, chief economist for Wayne Hummer Investments. “People who want to be home owners will get back into the market.”

By STEPHEN GANDEL

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A house needn’t be 10,000 square feet with an unlimited budget to make an impact. If your resources are finite, many experts suggest giving the most attention to things at eye level that people can see and touch. The front door is one such spot that can make a huge statement about the personality of the house and the people who live inside.

DV Wise, Inc is Lake Norman / Mooresville, NC premier custom home builder, Certified Green Professional Builder

A massive, swiveling front door offers the first clue that this is no ordinary house, despite its otherwise traditional dormered façade. Whimsically pivoting as though revealing a secret passage, the opaque glass door directs visitors into a narrow, intimate gallery hall. This hall then expands into a larger volume space, with ceilings that soar 12 feet high. Contemporary artwork lines the entry hall, but the custom door is the masterpiece. Framed in Douglas fir and outlined by the home’s exterior redwood siding, it’s the first of several monumental-scale doors that flood the home’s interiors with natural light.

By Jenny Sullivan

http://www.builderonline.com/design/design-details-entryways.aspx?cid=BLDR100318002

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DV Wise Inc, Denver North Carolina, custom home builders

As the economy begins to stabilize, homeowners are still spending on outdoor living and landscape architecture, but they’re forgoing many of the bells and whistles that became fashionable during the housing boom and instead are refocusing on the basics, according to a recent survey by the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA). ASLA surveyed residential landscape architects about their perception of the popularity of various outdoor living and landscape features and elements for 2010.

Nearly 95 percent of the survey respondents rated outdoor living spaces such as kitchens and entertaining areas as somewhat or very popular this year. Overall, the market for residential landscape design has dropped significantly, according to Nancy Somerville, Hon. ASLA, the organization’s executive vice president, but there is still plenty of demand from clients who need to sell their homes and are looking for any way to differentiate their properties from the many others on the market. Upscale residential landscape design hasn’t paused, however, Somerville notes. High-end homeowners are still requesting outdoor living and landscape design as much as ever.

Creating outdoor living and entertaining spaces is still popular, but a lack of ready financing means that homeowners are changing their approach to projects. “The real difference is that people are looking at ways to economize on what they’re doing,” Somerville says. “We’re seeing people scaling back or doing bigger projects in increments.”

While classic outdoor living elements such as dining and seating areas (according to 95.6 percent of survey respondents), grills (94.4 percent), lighting (93.4 percent), and fire pits or fireplaces (94 percent) remain very popular, interest in elements such as outdoor sinks (50 percent), refrigerators (52.8 percent), and showers (36.5 percent), as well as high-tech systems such as outdoor televisions (35.6 percent) and stereo systems (57 percent) has declined overall. Other outdoor living elements rated somewhat or very popular for 2010 include:
•
Installed seating such as benches, seatwalls, ledges, steps, and boulders (90.6 percent);

•
Weatherized outdoor furniture (77 percent);

•
Counter space (73.5 percent).

Many types of water features will still be popular this year, including decorative elements such as ornamental pools, waterfalls, grottoes, water runnels and bubblers (86.8 percent); hot tubs and indoor/outdoor saunas (79 percent); and swimming pools (72.4 percent), the survey found. However, other recreational amenities such as sport courts are reportedly much less popular.
Somerville notes that the back-to-basics attitude among residential landscape design clients is driven in part by economic concerns—from financing to return on investment—but it’s also partly due to a desire for lower-maintenance features and the growing interest in sustainability.

The residential landscape architects surveyed indicated high interest among homeowners in landscaping and garden elements that require less maintenance and consume less water overall (94 percent), contribute to a household’s sustainability, and even supplement a household’s food needs. Many of the strategies for creating a low-cost, low-maintenance landscape deliver dual benefits, because they also contribute to a more sustainable landscape. Sixty-seven percent of surveyed practitioners also said that organically managed gardens will be somewhat or very popular this year. Other highly popular landscape and garden elements include plantings of native flora (83.9 percent) and vegetable gardens/orchards and vineyards (78.5 percent).

Other sustainable landscape design elements that will be somewhat or very popular in 2010 are:
•
Drip or other water-efficient irrigation systems (85 percent);

•
Native, adapted, or drought-tolerant plants (85 percent);

•
Reduced grassy lawn areas (73.9 percent);

•
Permeable paving (72.5 percent);

•
Recycled landscaping materials (68 percent);

•
Rainwater or graywater harvesting systems (64 percent).

Although they have been affected by the economic downturn, landscape architects luckily haven’t been hit as hard as many of the other design and construction industry segments, according to Somerville. The diversity within their practices tends to mean they can focus on planning services when demand for landscape design and construction is low. Also, landscape architecture tends to trail declines in the larger design and construction segments, to experience less dramatic declines, and to recover before building design and construction, notes Somerville. Landscape architecture’s recovery will be slow and gradual, mirroring the recovery of the broader economy, she adds.

ASLA offers several tips for designing resource-efficient, low-maintenance residential gardens and landscapes on its website.

By Stephani L. Miller

Source: residential architect online
Publication date: March 16, 2010

http://www.residentialarchitect.com/industry-news.asp?sectionID=275&articleID=1226434&artnum=1

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However, rules effective April 22 governing contractors in homes where lead paint may be present will prevent meaningful retrofit work from being done because there won’t be enough certified renovation contractors trained in the federal Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) new Lead Safe Work Practices.

•Roughly 79 million homes constructed before 1978 are subject to the Lead Renovation, Repair and Repainting Rule.
•EPA has estimated that more than 236,000 remodelers, window installers, painters, heating and air-conditioning specialists and other trade contractors must be trained to ensure compliance with the rule.
•Only about 14,000 people have been certified to date.
•Just 135 firms throughout the country are approved to offer the training courses.
•In some states there are still no approved trainers.
According to NAHB, many of its members will have to avoid working in older homes to avoid breaking the law, which is in direct conflict to an today’s business environment where improving energy efficiency and creating jobs are national priorities.

Matt Phair, HousingZone Contributing Editor
March 12, 2010
HousingZone

http://www.housingzone.com/article/CA6722756.html?nid=&rid

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