Maybe this is a far stretch to ask being a newbie and all, but I wanted to know more information about making houses “green”. Such as more energy efficient and overall better for the environment. I know these days they’re giving people plenty of money to “go green”. Personally I’ve always thought of rehabbing homes and making them more efficient while still being affordable. Does the government give money for doing this? I know they give money for doing this to your personal home as well but I don’t really know where to get more information on this. Can someone give me info on this kind of stuff? I’m going to search around but I hope someone could give me more info they know of as well. Thanks.
I didn’t know that houses were bad for the environment.
The state of Oregon occassionally issues tax credits for different energy saving features. The offers vary from time to time, and none of them will pay the full price.
Sometimes a utility company will pay an incentive or offer heat loss evaluations for free.
Occassionally a private organization will offer an incentive. We had one last year for replacing refrigerators with new energy efficient ones. It was worth about $50. Not anywhere near the cost of a new fridge, but a nice bonus if you happened to need a fridge anyway.
Actually, right now, the state of Oregon is offering some pretty good incentives to install a wind farm.
“Green” all by itself won’t get you a higher price or higher rent. Tenants move out when heating bills are too high, so good insulation can pay off in the long run.
Buildings output 40% of earth’s produced carbon.
Go here: http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f5695.pdf The tax credit is 30% of big ticket items - they don’t allow the small stuff anymore. So windows, doors, roof, insulation, water heater, furnace, etc.
Typically, you’ll still spend more on “green” products with the tax incentive than standard products. As an investor it’s bad, but as an owner it’s good, because it saves money the more you use them.
Thanks for the info all. I’d love to be able to rehab and maybe even build “green homes” later on. obviously this would be a while down the road, but I’m a big fan of “green projects”. I’d think with the big push to make green jobs and such that there would be plenty of money to help. I wouldn’t do this for higher rent or bigger profit but because it’s what I want to do. I’d love to rehab and build houses that are more efficient as a 'business", my thing if you will. So much money and resources wasted, just think it would be great to make things better. Just some things I was thinking about like sunroofs, solar panels, LED lights, upgraded insulation and things of that sort.
Well I have a magazine, called “Personal real estate investor”, now I remember why I brought this topic up. they have a whole section that covers “going green” and talk about how it could benefit investors with incentives and even money to make homes green. I read through some of it and they advocate the simple stuff like changing light bulbs for more efficiency, better windows, insulation, etc. I was looking for something “bigger” I suppose, I mean I wouldn’t ask money to change that kind of stuff. So I’ll continue looking and post info in here that I do find. Seems that there are a few companies that specialize in this stuff already, which is awesome.
I think going green is a great thing…
Heck of a lot better then RED YUCK!
Well of course, but I’d like to go green, while going green. 
:smile
I have a good friend who is a national leader in the field if you want to drop me a PM
In our area we can get a tax credit of $1500 for changing out windows and doors with energy-saving models.
Furnishedowner
That’s not bad at all. Still waiting for a lot of these “bigger” green products to go mainstream. I remember a while back seeing some things being made. Like paint that actually cleans the air and never needs repainting or something like that. Windows that actually serve a purpose, I believe they actually supplied some sort of energy. Cooling systems specific to each room and only turned on when someone was in the area, same with lighting. Stuff like that, but I’m thinking of doing this more on a business level other than just rehabbing for quick cash. :smile
We’ve got motion sensors to turn the hall lights off in our apartment building, but that’s because we have to pay the common area electric bill.
We also insulate our houses so people’s heating/cooling bills are smaller. We figure if we save them a little bit on their utilities, that’s a little better chance they’ll have the rent on time.