Sometimes it helps to put a face on economic statistics, so let's look at a typical American family, calling them Bob and Mary Conserver. Bob and Mary Conserver earn $63,000 a year, the typical family income. Like millions of Americans, Bob and Mary Conserver have seen their earning power erode and are struggling to find their way to higher financial ground.
The single biggest heat sink or energy robber in a home is the windows. There are several things to consider here. First and foremost is the total square footage of windows. I've never had someone come to me and say "Ronnie build me a home that's dark and doesn't have many windows." Always it goes like this,"I want a home that is light and airy." Then of course the buyer covers all of the windows with blinds, shades, shutters, drapes, curtains, or heaven forbid foil and seldom opens them due to excessive heat, cold or allergens in the air.
We are in a buyer's market. This means that buyers will most likely get their way. They can negotiate for a better value. The sellers would be willing to listen to your request and would even add freebies and gifts to encourage you to purchase.
There are a lot of inexpensive yet beautiful choices. Since we are in a buyer's market, homes are sold at a more affordable price. This includes new homes. You can choose from the many choices available. And you will have the luxury of taking your time because there are only few buyers in the market.
To illustrate the strange effect we are seeing in this market where job security is high, we can look at what is happening with prices. The average price per square foot of a home sold was down 4% from last year yet the ecofriendly average selling price was down only 1% from a year ago. So it seems that as the prices of Sustainable Homes come down, people are buying more house. Perhaps it is a slightly larger home (The average size of a home sold in Q2 was 2,333 sf, the highest of any quarter since 2001!) or it has more features. The fact is, buyers are able to afford homes and show a willingness to spend the money to get what they want. Again, this would not happen in a poor economy!
Today you will find energy efficient bulbs in stores everywhere. They are inexpensive too -- under $3 a bulb. It is such an ordinary consumer product that has a big impact on our lives, particularly on many of the most urgent problems we all are facing: energy consumption; rising cost of electric bills and gasoline prices; greenhouse gas emissions, global warming, coal and foreign oil dependence to name a few.
Flowers are not surviving as well as they have in previous years due to unseasonable heat. Walk past a road side flower shop and you are likely to see very little variety with the majority of popular choices dying before they hit the cash out counter.
Thirdly they are acoustically well insulated as well, which means that they keep the noise pollution where it belongs and the insides of the house nice and peaceful. Most of all the homes are the best choice of living because they are built in an eco-friendly way.