Will a white roof cool your home?

Instead of painting the town red, researchers and the U.S Secretary of Energy would prefer that we pain it White. At least our roofs for that matter.

Researchers at the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) in Boulder, Colorado say that their research shows that painting our roofs white will reduce the "urban heat island effect".

What the heck is the urban heat island effect you say? It refers to the asphalt roads, tar roofs and other artificial surfaces that permeate cities absorb heat from the sun, making temperatures in urban areas on average 2 to 5 degrees Fahrenheit (1 to 3 degrees Celsius) higher than in rural areas.

So they say that painting our roofs white would actually reflect heat back towards space which would cool our temperatures and reduce our carbon imprint with lower electricity needed to cool our homes.

I think that most people realize that we need to start making changes to reduce our carbon imprint and I know that everyone would prefer to spend less on our energy bills. However, the biggest hurdle that I think we would face in implementing this strategy would be the aesthetic changes and the unwillingness for people to accept them. In addition, the research conducted is just in "theory", we would need the population to actually implement it to test its validity and I am not sure we are ready for that yet.

What is your thought on painting your roof white?

Brian Heltzel
Putting On The Fix Remodeling
Burleson, TX
www.puttingonthefix.com

HUD amends law in hopes to decrease the inventory of foreclosed homes.

Foreclosed properties are purchased for many reasons such as a person's primary residence. They also pose as financial opportunities for investors. Some investors remodel the property and turn around and sell it for a quick profit. Some remodel the property and hold on to the property as a rental. In recent years, FHA had imposed restrictions for the borrowers from purchasing a property from someone who has owned the property less than 90 days. Those owners typically are/were investors.

With the recent downturn in the economy and housing bust that lead to heights of our nation's foreclosure crisis, HUD has decided to lift those restrictions for 1 year. They are hoping that easying of the law will bring more investors back into the housing market to help easy the foreclosure meltdown.

I guess only time will tell if their actions will help their cause or if it will lead to more issues that arose in years past that brought on the restrictions in the first place. Hopefully it will assist in our housing market because right now we could use all the help we can get!

For more details on the new changes, check out the press release by HUD.

Brian Heltzel
Putting On The Fix Remodeling
Burleson, TX
www.puttingonthefix.com

What happened to Cash for Caulkers?

Homeowners, home service providers, banks, manufacturers, heck everyone other than extreme Conservatives and Libertarians were excited when the whispers of a Cash for Caulkers program was in the making.

It would provide tax benefits and more efficient homes for homeowners. More work for home service companies. More jobs for workers. More cash flow into our economy, etc...

However, word on the street is that the implementation of the Cash for Caulkers program has been put on the back burner. Despite an immediate need for a jolt to the housing industry to assist in an economic recovery, politics reared its ugly head and pushed this program aside so that the politician's full attention could be focused on the Health Program Bill.

So send a quick email to your local State Representative or Congressman and urge them to pass the Cash for Caulkers bill so we can create a healthier living environment and save money on our energy bills and hopefully at the same time work our way out of this recession.

Brian Heltzel
Putting On The Fix Remodeling
Burleson, TX
www.puttingonthefix.com

To remodel or not to remodel when selling your home?

That is the question!

With latest news on the reversal of the housing industry (home sales and production were down last month) it is feared that we might not have hit the bottom of the downturn.

What does that mean for anyone trying to sell their home? Obviously that means that it just became even more difficult than it was just a few months ago when there was a sliver of light to a recovery. So that makes it even more important to think about making improvements to your home you are trying to sell so it stands out amongst the other homes on the market in your community.

Brian Heltzel
Putting On The Fix Remodeling
Burleson, TX
www.puttingonthefix.com
In a recent article by Yahoo, Ron Phipps, a real estate broker, had made the following comments:

"Clients are savvier than ever in their shopping. Even though the costs of home improvements are less likely to be returned on resale than they have been in prior years, sellers may still have to bite the bullet and do the remodeling if they want their house to sell at all", he said.

"It's kind of intriguing," said Phipps. "Buyers are using the unimproved houses to negotiate lower prices, but they wind up buying the remodeled homes."

"So, if there are two similar houses in the area, buyers will use the listing price of the one that has not gone through a metamorphosis to get the seller of the renovated house to slash their price. Buyers want to pay for the caterpillar but get the butterfly."

Seller must play along if they want to make deals. "You get to sell the house more quickly if you do the renovations," Phipps said.