The kitchen is one of the most important rooms in your home. It’s the one room where you spend hours each day cooking and spending time with family and friends. Incorporate responsible stewardship by:

• Investing in compact fluorescent lights to reduce your power usage and setting up your lighting system so that you’re able to illuminate just the work surfaces or areas you need.
• Buying appliances that are Energy Star rated so that you save on your power usage and expenses.
• Putting in windows to bring in the maximum amount of sunlight so that you don’t have to switch on your tubes and bulbs during the daytime.
• Using wood that is certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) as having been cut using sustainable methods for your cabinets and drawers.
• Using paints and adhesives that do not have VOC (volatile organic compounds) that are harmful to you and the environment.
• Using recycled material wherever possible, like your tiling and countertops.
• Investing in cabinets that are formaldehyde-free.
• Looking at bamboo, cork, linoleum or any other wood certified by the FSC for your floor.
• Making sure your ventilation is done well.
• Keeping your refrigerator away from direct sunlight and at some distance from the oven.
• Making sure your faucets do not leak and that they are fitted with flow reducers.
• Setting up a system for recycling your old cans and bottles and disposing of your waste according to what can and cannot be recycled.
• Using compost bins so that your waste is disposed of responsibly.

Besides these constructional ideas and methods for a green kitchen, you could also do your part by not leaving the water running, the lights on, and making sure computers and other electronics are on standby when they are not being used.

This article is written by Kat Sanders, who regularly blogs on the topic of construction management degrees online at her blog The Fixer-Upper Blog. She welcomes your comments and questions at her email address: katsanders25@gmail.com.

Popularity: 25% [?]

A few months ago it seemed as if homes in the $180k-260k price range were < $150 sq ft. Now some of these homes, located in quiet neighborhoods w/desirable schools, are going for > $150 sq ft. Here’s a good example.

Even at asking price, 3% FHA down payment for this home is only about $6500. Obama’s first time buyer tax credit is $8000. If you can come up with the down payment, you will receive most of it back from the IRS within several months of close.

Or, if you have saved up enough for the down payment and don’t have to borrow from friends or family, the credit can be applied to the loan or to remodeling the house in 2010 (what is this going to do for the remodeling industry in 2010?).

Some additional details regarding the credit:

* You need to buy the home prior to December 1, 2009.
* You need to stay in the home for at least three years.
* The credit is for 10% of the purchase price. Most people will be able to claim the full $8k.
* The credit begins to phase out for single filers w/gross AGI > $75k and joint filers w/AGI > $150k.
* The credit comes in the form of a CHECK from the IRS. You simply need to amend your 2008 return.

Popularity: 38% [?]

I have been amazed at how long is has taken our Congressional leaders to realize that it is the fiscally responsible homeowners that are propping up what’s left of the economy. Their credit is good, they did not buy a home valued at 4x their gross income, they spend moderately and “sustainably”, and their savings provide stability during this crisis.

Well, representation may finally be here, provided the leadership in Washington doesn’t fail again. Some highlights from the latest proposal are:

• To offer all responsible homeowners the option to refinance at 4% (Republican).
• To offer the $7500 (possibly $15k) buyers tax credit to all home buyers, not just first-time buyers (Democrat).
• To reset the payment for those in foreclosure so that it is no more than 31% of gross income (Democrat).

While I am not a fan of bailing out those who bought a home worth more than they could afford (re: the last proposal), I understand that most people do not plan on losing their jobs. This means that while the last proposal bails out gamblers, it also protects those who may have had a recent job loss and are trying to make ends meet. People with families and children who should probably know enough to save but haven’t learned why.

Eugenians know Peter DeFazio is the man to talk to about this. Send your message to Peter through this form if you agree that the bailout should support not only gambling bankers and irresponsible borrowers, but also those who provide stability and financial temperance during this crisis of confidence.

This blog would like to offer a couple of additional proposals:

• The banking executives that led the country down this dark, over-leveraged tunnel should fail. Bonuses should never exist in this environment. Our government cannot afford the perception that it is corrupted by a revolving door that protects those who need no financial protection.
• The banks that deceived shareholders and homeowners regarding the extent of their “off balance sheet” assets should fail. No bailout for the gamblers and liars. The government should replace that liquidity with STRONGER loans to their competitors w/strict rules to protect the borrower. When Lehman brothers failed, it hurt, but what hurt more was not purging the rest when that could have been done within a matter of months.

Popularity: 50% [?]

Owning a home is the ultimate American dream, and for some of us, we get to go one step ahead and build the home of our dreams. The newest trend is to build green by using materials that are environment friendly, designing spaces to utilize energy more efficiently, furnishing your home with Energy Star rated appliances, avoiding wastage and using natural resources as much as possible. There’s the double advantage of doing your bit to help the environment and cutting back on your own electricity and utility bills. If you’re looking for tips, plans and pointers as you contemplate the green home you’ve always desired, here are a few websites that offer help:

• Green Home Guide: Maintained by the United States Green Building Council, this site offers comprehensive information on green home programs, green remodeling guidelines, how to live green and other resources. Learn how you can get your home LEED certified and other interesting facts here. (The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) standards which were developed as early as the turn of the century by the United States Green Building Council in order to create the “world’s greenest buildings” awards points in order to certify a building gold or platinum – energy efficiency rates 17 points, water savings add up to 5 points and indoor environment gets up to 15 points; a total of 39 earns a gold star while a platinum branding needs at least 52 points).
• Green Home Building: This site offers a treasure trove of information, plans, designs and other resources that help when you’re starting to come up with ideas for your green home. Besides sustainable designs (eco friendly), you also have vernacular options that focus on local architecture, indigenous material and talent. You can seek expert opinion or buy building codes and other resources.
• Green Building: This building tells you how a green home should be constructed and offers links to professionals in the field. Learn how to go about a green remodeling project or talk to experts on energy to see how your home can benefit.
• Green is Universal: Besides the usual resources to help build sustainable and eco friendly homes that you find on other sites, this one offers a virtual reality exercise where you can play at building your own green home online.
• Building Green: This site offers a live feed of all the news related to green building from all around the world. Other links offer access to green projects, products and articles.

This article is contributed by Sarah Scrafford, who regularly writes on the topic of international home listings. She invites your questions, comments and freelancing job inquiries at her email address: sarah.scrafford25@gmail.com.

Popularity: 90% [?]

The Register Guard recently reported that the State of Oregon has given Eugene approximately $200k to clean up the city in advance of the Olympic Trials.

This has been fantastic, and has discouraged graffiti “artists” from polluting sidewalks and signs in parks. It has also impacted Eugene citizens’ perception of their city, and city leadership. Temporarily at least.

All for $200k. I encourage the City of Eugene to make this type of cleanup a long term commitment. Part of a long term plan to renew the city. For all the millions being spent on wooded acreage that the elite 5% of the city uses (and a good thing it’s not all residents, or it would fall to ruin), the city could take a small % of those city/county/state $ each year and maintain the resources closest to residents.

Thank you Olympic Committee and the State of Oregon!

Popularity: 89% [?]

Avot Media is working with Home Depot to provide in-store “how to” videos for certain Home Depot product lines.

Here’s an even better use of this technology:

1. A home buyer drives by a house in a neighborhood they like, and takes a flyer.
2. On the flyer (or the box if the agent forgot to refill it), is a text number.
3. The person, an avid American Idol fan, knows how to text.
4. They text to the number, and receive a video link.
5. Assuming their phone can handle non-proprietary video, and many do (except that elegant iphone), they watch a video tour of the home.

Or they could just start with Cell Trust,although their products appear to introduce far more feature bloat.

Popularity: 90% [?]

Which Northwest city was hit hardest in 2007? Difficult to say. Each of these cities were hit equally hard.

However, these cities may have narrowly missed the negative equity tide that washed away markets in a number of California cities, especially Vallejo.

In fact, the charts below suggest that the NW is pulling out of a relatively mild real estate slump.

First, Eugene..

Then Portland..

And Seattle..

Thanks again to Zillow for the amazing “open source” statistics!

Popularity: 100% [?]

Springfield has pushed through another coup. They are targeting lower class sizes, on average, than Eugene.

Another bold approach for a City that is doing its best to climb out of, and make the best of the Simpsons (ironically, a source of pride)/Anti-anyone-different reputation their community leaders and citizenry helped to cultivate for over a decade.

A magnificent new hospital that Eugene lost, street repairs (in contrast to potholes EVERYWHERE in Eugene), fresh downtown development, a new community policing approach…Springfield is becoming all things innovative while Eugene is behaving like grandpa in the easy chair. Nothing wrong with grandpa’s easy chair; if all you want to do is look in the rear view mirror.

Popularity: 93% [?]