5 Energy Efficient Improvements You Can Make with FHA 203K Loans

Times are tight and homeowners nationwide are looking for ways to lower their monthly energy bills, make their homes more efficient and do their part in creating a cleaner & greener planet earth. In the past we have shown you how to finance your improvements with FHA 203K financing, now we want to expound on how to use FHA 203K loans to potentially save yourself hundreds of dollars or more on your annual energy bills.

1. EnergyStar Appliances.

Replacing your appliances is an easy and affordable way to save 20%+ of your monthly energy bill. EnergyStar appliances are widely available and comparably priced to their less efficient equivalents. There is NO reason not to have them in your house.

2. Insulate, Insulate, Insulate…

Effective insulation slows the rate that heat flows out of the house in winter or into the house in summer, so less energy is required to heat or cool the house. Choosing the RIGHT contractor for your renovation can help you make sure your house is properly insulated. If your house has no wall insulation, and it has more-or-less continuous wall cavities (such as conventional stud walls), blown-in insulation can greatly improve your comfort and save enough energy to be very cost-effective. If your attic is unfinished, you can often look to upgrade your insulation there as well.

3. Improve Your Water Efficiency.

I don’t want to delve too deep into wasting water since I have already done that on a previous post. So, in an effort to avoid redundancy and save myself some time I’ll just direct you there and you can read the multiple ways you can reduce your water consumption. Savings by the Gallon With FHA 203K…

4. Replace Those Drafty Windows.

If your windows are old and leaky, it may be time to replace them with energy-efficient models. Windows are not huge energy losers, accounting for no more than 20% of a homes typical loss, but if you are replacing windows for other reasons then energy efficient windows are a no-brainer. Typically, EnergyStar windows cost no more than $15 more per window than their less efficient cousins.

5. Dump the Older Furnace.

If your furnace was built before 1992 and has a standing pilot, it probably wastes 35 percent of the fuel it uses. We recommend early replacement with a “condensing furnace” with annual efficiency of at least 90 percent. This type of furnace wastes no more than 10 percent of the natural gas you buy, and may save you as much as 27 percent on your heating bill.

Jonathan Blackwell FHA 203K Renovation Specialist Hometown Lenders Atlanta, Georgia, 30317	Work: 404-551-3845 Mobile: 404-519-5383 www.203KLoan.net

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Still haven’t taken the plunge into living green at home? With rates on FHA 203K Renovation Loans hovering around 5.5% on a 30 Yr Fixed now is the perfect time to refinance and include those green improvements you need to help you save money in a rough economy.

Bathroom Renovations

EnergyStar Appliances

Kitchen Renovations

EnergyStar Doors & Windows

Imagine shaving 30%+ off your monthly energy bills in 2009. Now is the right time to take advantage of those savings. Don’t let these rates slip away.

Jonathan Blackwell

404-551-3845

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Everyone in Georgia knows that water consumption has become a big issue. One look at my wilted lawn last summer and you know that we don’t enough to go around. However, we can change that next time we tackle a renovation project with a few simple changes to the biggest water guzzler of them all, the bathroom.

From toilets to tubs, we use around 60% or our household water supply in the bathroom. Don’t fret though there a few simple changes we can tackle that can dramatically reduce that consumption

Inefficient Toilets — Toilets guzzle nearly 27% of your household water supply every year. Older homes often have toilets that average nearly 3.5 GALLONS PER FLUSH! If you haven’t updated that old toilet I suggest you get hopping as newer low flow toilets consume less than a third of that outdated guzzler you have now. In fact, if you toilet is using more than 1.6 GPF then it is time to make a change.

Wasteful Showers — Although not as bad as toilets, showers can also be huge water wasters. Some fancier systems with multiple heads can actually burn through 80 gallons per minute. Federal guidelines for a single head shower require 2.5 gallons per minute or less, but you can take it even further and get one of Delta’s new H20 Kinetics head that only use 1.6 GPM.

Water Heaters — American households waste an average of 6.35 gallons of water per day waiting around for the water to heat up. Wait no more however and get yourself a tankless on demand water heater to have instantly hot water. Check for your individual state, but you might just get a tax credit for purchasing one.

Faucets — Finally, while you are making all the other water saving changes you might just want to go ahead and increase efficiency at the faucet as well. Most faucets run about 2.2 GPM or less, but newer models may just use a paltry 1.5 GPM.

Ready to stop wasting all that water? If you are short on cash for those renovations contact us for an FHA 203K Green Renovation Loan and we can take care of that bathroom, along with those old energy wasting windows and appliances while we are at it!

Jonathan Blackwell

404-551-3845

I was called yesterday by a gentlemen with an interesting idea on how we could use green renovation in conjunction with affordable housing programs to help turn some of the existing foreclosure stock into housing for low and moderate income families. To be quite honest it was a subject I hadn’t thought a lot about, my focus had been on green renovation on the upper end homes and traditional renovation for the lower end homes. However, the concept makes a huge amount of sense and I thank him for bringing it to my attention.

So much of today’s existing housing stock is in the form of foreclosures. Many of them aren’t livable and have been vacant for some time. What if we could get a movement going to help take these properties and provide affordable green renovations for buyers in need through FHA 203K renovation loans? Not only are you fulfilling the mission of FHA 203K, to restore and preserve America’s existing housing stock, but you are also incorporating money and energy saving green improvements into those homes. I’m not talking about solar panels and wind turbines here; I am talking about simple and affordable improvements like EnergyStar windows and appliances, low flow toilets and showers with on demand water heaters. Not only would these kind of improvements benefit the planet, but they would also help the low to moderate income home buyers save on their monthly energy bills. That makes their mortgage more affordable, lessens the likelihood they default on their mortgage and helps restore the integrity and quality of the neighborhood by ensuring that its homes are in good condition and OCCUPIED!

It seems like such a simple idea. Why are we not doing it? The government has shelled out well over a trillion dollars to bailout banks, brokerages and even car dealerships, but no one has thought that it might kill two birds with one stone to turn existing foreclosures into affordable green renovations that are cost effective and available for low to moderate income home buyers? Who am I to say, but I think that is a damn fine plan to help restore America’s housing market and get our neighborhoods back on track.

Jonathan Blackwell

www.203KLoan.net

404-551-3845

You Don’t Have to Move Out to Move Up!
By Jonathan Blackwell

When most homeowners want more space or a fancier place they call Real Estate Agent and start their search for a new home. It doesn’t have to be that way though, you don’t have to move out to move up! You can just RENOVATE.

Recently homeowners wanting new digs have found the going a bit tougher. Both Fannie Mae and FHA have instituted tough new rules aimed at homeowners looking to buy a new place and rent out their current residence until market conditions improve. For both you now must have significant equity, 25% and 30% respectively, to use the rental income on your current residence to qualify. That means that many people now have to qualify for both mortgage payments. Obviously, that simply isn’t possible for many homeowners. All is not lost for those wanting a bigger space though, they just need to look a little closer to home.

Both FHA 203K and Fannie Mae Homestyle Renovation Loans allow homeowners to refinance and renovate their current residence. They allow it all based on the after repair value of the renovations instead of what your home is currently worth. Only have 10% equity currently? That is not a problem for FHA 203K or Fannie Mae Homestyle renovation loans, they are only concerned with the equity you will have when you are finished with your renovations! So, how can you use a Renovation Loan?

New Freestanding Appliances, Complete Bathroom Remodel, Adding a New Master Bathroom, Upgrading Heating & Cooling Systems, New Siding, Fresh Paint Inside or Out, Attic Build-Outs, Finishing the Basement, Making the House Handicapped Accessible, Complete & Total Renovation, Adding a 2nd Floor, Adding a New Master Bedroom, New Deck & Outdoor Kitchen Area, Upgrading Doors and Windows, New Hardwood Flooring or New Carpet, New Lighting, Upgrading Plumbing & Electrical System, New Fixtures for Bathrooms and Kitchens, Opening Up a Floorplan, New Kitchen Counters, Vaulting Your Ceiling, Going Green with Solar Panels, and Building a New Garage to name a few!

There are hundreds of ways these loans can help you create the house you want without having to pack and unpack a moving truck. You can even add those green and energy efficient improvements you have wanted while you are creating your new space. If you are in Georgia, Alabama, Florida, Tennessee or Virginia and would like to discuss your FHA 203K or Fannie Mae Homestyle choices go visit our quick and easy Renovation Advisor now!

Jonathan Blackwell

FHA 203K Specialist

Hometown Lenders

203KLoan.net

404-551-3845

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Jonathan_Blackwell

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If so contact me and I will feature you on this blog! We can track your progress, costs, trials and tribulations while hopefully inspiring some other homeowners / homebuyers to renovate GREEN.

Jonathan Blackwell

404-551-3845

Think about it. Even if you make your new construction project as green as possible, you are still using new materials instead of reusing and recycling old ones. Not to mention with the current real estate market, the availability of new construction financing in comparison to the affordability of renovation financing and the fact that existing housing stock in disrepair can be purchased at discounted prices, this is really a no-brainer. If green is truly important to you then you will renovate instead of building new.

Jonathan Blackwell

404-551-3845

Terrazzo, used by the ancient Romans, is one of the oldest building materials on earth. It’s use was one part functionality and one part beauty. However, it has fallen back in favor recently due to the demand to reuse and recycle materials that once might have been discarded

Originally created by Venetian construction workers as a low cost flooring material, the workers used marble chips from upscale jobs to create Terrazzo. The workers would usually set them in clay to surface the patios around their living quarters. Now construction workers have expanded the use of Terrazzo from just marble chips to materials using glass, granite and other recyclable materials.

One of the most popular Terrazzo surfaces is made from recycled glass and cast concrete. The glass used is both post consumer as well as post industrial. The final product contains 80% to 95% post-consumer recycled content, and as such, relies on the material being produced and consumed in the first place. Terrazzo is as durable as granite and less porous than marble which makes for a long lasting AND beautiful green addition to your home.

As always when selecting green building materials, look for local manufacturers to reduce transporation based pollution cost.

Jonathan Blackwell

404-551-3845

Bamboo flooring has become hugely popular in recent years for a couple of reasons. First, it is good looking flooring, but second it is also an easily renewable resource that takes less than 5 years to grow to maturity. When you compare that to the 50-100 years that traditional hardwoods you can see why bamboo has potential. Bamboo is affordable to boot!

One thing to consider when purchasing bamboo for your home is where it was produced. Most bamboo is produced in Asia and shipped to the US. In my opinion that is far from green. However, there are some local US producers of bamboo. They should be your first choice in bamboo providers. If you can’t find a local producer make sure and ask your distributor if they do carbon offsets for the bamboo they ship from Asia.

Jonathan Blackwell

404-551-3845