asheville sustainable real estate: Their "UGLY" GREEN ROOF -- or is it?
- 05/08/08 02:45 AM
You may have guessed by now that besides being a REALTOR® here in Asheville, NC, . . .I'm also an old schoolteacher. So when I got this request to help out a neighborhood elementary school, (see graphic to the left) it set me off on a journey to find out more about living roofs or green roofs and what I/we as REALTORS ®and you might do to help out. . ..
First....a definition:
According to Living Roof Systems, a living roof building is above ground, "with increased opportunity for omni-directional natural daylighting, ventilation, views, and access. " Now on to 5 important … (24 comments)
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asheville sustainable real estate: 22 BIG QUESTIONS about Conservation Easements Asked by a Waterfall
- 05/05/08 12:29 AM
SO...having spent this weekend by a waterfall (see photo JT took ) on "forever wild" land adjacent to a conservation neighborhood our Asheville, N.C. real estate firm is getting to know...
a number of questions about conservation easements popped up in my mind. . .22 to be exact...and there are probably some I haven't even thought of yet! But here, as a REALTOR® (and as an interested party) is what I want review . . .
What is a conservation easement? What is a land trust or land conservancy? Why do landowners donate conservation easements? What are the financial incentives … (15 comments)
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asheville sustainable real estate: Riff on the Eye-Opener Forestry Report- RIPARIAN AREAS in An Eco-community
- 05/04/08 12:34 AM
RIPARIAN AREAS in An Eco-community--a real eye-opener!
This week I've been reading the Forestry Report RIFF on a Forestry Report-SOILS : Asheville Eco-Community (series) as part of the research we do before listing an Asheville area eco-development. It's been quite an eye-opener. For me, it reiterated how important it is for real estate professionals to know more about environmentally-sensitive properties. Today, I'm giving serious thought to environmental factors in terms of riparian areas. I understand that we will need to be able to point out
where the riparian areas areif any building sites are in a flood plainhow close to these areas builders can construct … (13 comments)
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asheville sustainable real estate: LOT 16 Hickory Nut Forest Gerton, N.C. 28735
- 05/03/08 01:14 AM
WHATEVER YOU CHOOSE-
Building a HealthyBuilt home adjacent to over 1,000 Acres of Conservation Land Participating at some level in a sustainable community or Ecovillage, Selecting a building site for the future you must know that THIS Asheville, NC eco-community is amazing! Right from the start, the eco-innovators who designed and planned this conservation neighborhood have "done it right"! Right from the start, they thought about renewable energy sources and organic gardens.NOTE: ARTISTS and ARTISANS ...for these reasons and more, you are going to love Building Site 16, so here's a heads-up for you...read on....
(photo of artist enjoying stream on Site 16 property)
Welcome … (14 comments)
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asheville sustainable real estate: RIFF on a Forestry Report- TOPOGRAPHY : Asheville Eco-Community (series) It's SOLAR!
- 04/30/08 01:59 AM
TOPOGRAPHY : Asheville Eco-Community (series # 2) This is FUN!
Topography- I love to read topos, do you? There is mystery and adventure in each one! I think it's exciting to get a visual of how the LAND lies.
Today, continuing with musings on the Forestry Report (see RIFF on a Forestry Report-SOILS : Asheville Eco-Community (series) ) as part of the research we do before listing any acreage, I'm excited. In this case it's because I'm reviewing topos on an amazing eco-development.
I'm ready to give some serious thought to the section on Topography in the Forestry Report.
We have previewed and walked the land, of … (16 comments)
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asheville sustainable real estate: RIFF on a Forestry Report-SOILS : Asheville Eco-Community (series)
- 04/29/08 03:07 AM
In Parts I, II ,III and IV I talked about an eco-community about to bloom not far from Asheville, N.C. I shared how excited we are at the prospect of representing the eco-developers. Today, these eco-innovators, who are dotting their "i's" and crossing their "t's", provided the Forestry Report to our Firm for examination, and for our files.
I don't know how many of you are familiar with a Forestry Report, but if you get a chance to read one, don't miss the opportunity!
Here (and in posts to follow) is my "riff" on the Forestry Report. My riff plays into a few especially interesting ideas that … (13 comments)
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asheville sustainable real estate: Wild Turkeys Couldn't Keep Me Away from This Local Spot~ Beaver Lake
- 04/27/08 02:11 AM
Wild Turkeys Couldn't Keep Me Away from Beaver Lake and the Sanctuary. We walk around Beaver Lake almost every week, visit our neighbors. We continue to be amazed with the light-flashing waters. The surrounding mountains border the Beaver Lake as if to entice a canvas from some modern-day French Impressionist . The acres of open space where kids play, the families finding picnic spots, and just beyond, the canoes awaiting turns to glide by all participate in this colorful scene. A sense of "all's right" in the world seems to be in the air.
If you are a birder, you will love the Beaver Lake Sanctuary where you can spot LOONS, GREBES, … (31 comments)
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asheville sustainable real estate: Can You Prosper in a Conservation Neighborhood?
- 04/26/08 02:07 AM
"To live sustainably in this beautiful, peaceful, healthy, sacred place in the magnificent North Carolina mountains is to prosper" .
By "prosper" , according to the Free Dictionary, I mean:
1. To grow well or luxuriantly; thrive: The crops flourished in the rich soil...
2. To do or fare well...3. To be in a period of highest productivity, excellence, or influence...
And here in the mountains not far from our beloved Asheville, NC, you'll find a conservation neighborhood connected in a special way with the natural world where you can do just that.
It is a sustainable community where neighbors can prosper in a community designed … (13 comments)
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asheville sustainable real estate: The Cutting Edge of GREEN : Trends & Amazing ECO-News Series
- 04/23/08 02:40 AM
Many times, early in the morning, I like to go for a quick run around the World Wide Web. It's good to get perspective on trends and attitudes. It seems that each time I do this from my elegant cabin in the mountains right here in Asheville, I am amazed at the wealth of cutting edge "GREEN" news "out there"...
This week, among other "amazing scoops in the ECO-news" I discovered something that could be of huge value to those of you interested in conservation real estate. It's a comprehensive online database of land conservation. The Trust for Public Land (TPL), a national conservation organization … (7 comments)
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asheville sustainable real estate: Common Sense in the City of Bliss. Is this about eco-community?
- 04/19/08 02:21 AM
I'm sort of a "common sense" kind of person.. I like waterfalls, (photo taken at eco-community near Asheville) the first snow fall, sitting around the fire with my friends, and delicious organically-grown tomatoes...IOW... balance in my life.
Possibly, as a young schoolteacher in Michigan, way back when, I acquired common sense from my fourth-graders.
Today, at our eco-savvy real estate brokerage in the "City of Bliss", Asheville, NC , "common sense" is about making a positive difference in our neighborhood and in the world in terms of land use and planning , healthy living environments, and camaraderie....
summed up as eco-community on many levels- the seemingly small … (8 comments)
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asheville sustainable real estate: YOU Can Create a Green Home Next to a Stream in Asheville
- 04/18/08 12:54 PM
Not far from the cultural hub of Asheville, North Carolina yet surrounded by forever-wild mountain forests, soaring cliffs, cascading streams , and stuff of which dreams of Home are made is the doorway to possibility in the form of an eco-community that thrives on nature.
I'm heading over the valley and up the mountainside this weekend to take more photos to show you.
(How do you like this one?)
I want to see for myself if what I've heard is true....that you can create a green home next to a stream, and walk for miles right out your back door then camp … (3 comments)
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asheville sustainable real estate: This Eco-Community = Eco-Innovation as an Exciting Model. Asheville, NC
- 04/13/08 01:16 AM
I am excited about eco-innovation. Especially when eco-innovation in the form of a model for eco-community comes to my home town, Asheville, N.C.
That's right. Big News.
The very first eco-development in the country to combine wide-ranging land conservation with an eco-friendly community of solar-heated and solar-powered " green-built" homes, has done just that.
Here, in the mountains of Asheville, North Carolina, we are known for green-built homes and for thoughtful land planning. But this eco-community is unique.
More than that, I think it is simply exciting.
EXCITING? Here's how:
Not far from the cultural hub of Asheville, North Carolina yet surrounded by forever-wild mountain forests, soaring … (9 comments)
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asheville sustainable real estate: Egg on Your Face? Or Farm Incubator?
- 04/09/08 02:49 AM
Recently, one of our clients, an international pilot spent the weekend with us as we hunted down the perfect small farm near Asheville. In the course of our days together, he suggested I read Barbara Kingsolver's bestselling nonfiction book, Animal, Vegetable, Miracle. In it, Barbara, recently turned 50, talks of her family's farm and the sustainable practices that make it work for the family and their neighbors.
How did he know that I love the idea of sustainable practices and growing my own vegetables to share? (I'm smiling.)
So, I got the book.
(see cover to your left)
My client was right. I'm inspired! … (13 comments)
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asheville sustainable real estate: Vintage Retrofit Office Dresses Up "Greening" the Neighborhood for Asheville REALTOR®
- 04/03/08 01:36 AM
Here it is! Our Office in Asheville. It's on a corner with huge old trees on either side, and a funeral parlor across the street...We joke about that sometimes. (You can fill jokes in as you might...) We plan to do a bunch of "retrofitting" each year. It's an interesting learning experience and challenging process.
Not long ago I asked all the real estate team what retrofitting they'd like to see done first. Here's what they told me:
Solar Panels Finish upgrading the windowsFinish the Low VOC paintingOrganic garden out backOn-Demand Water Heaters More Native landscapingSo I'm thinking...wait a minute...despite all the amazing new … (18 comments)
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asheville sustainable real estate: Asheville's in on the GREEN TREND, but Who's Doing WHAT in Your Neighborhood?
- 04/02/08 09:40 AM
Thinking about the "red hot GREEN" trend in real estate gets me going. I'm not the only one, either. Whether you are in Asheville, N.C. or Kalamazoo...getting involved in sustainable /green homes and land appears to call to "what makes sense" in the minds of consumers.
So...this is not just happening in Asheville, NC, although many say we are "THE Hub" of such activity. I'm smiling as I write this because I know that the eco-innovators in Georgia, Texas, Arizona, Washington State, Oregon, Western Michigan and elsewhere might have a thing or two to say about that.
Photo: No "pecking order" … (2 comments)
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asheville sustainable real estate: The Sign Read, "green homes for sale in asheville"
- 03/26/08 06:12 AM
Recently, not half an hour's drive from Asheville, N.C, (where our real estate market remains vital, ) we spotted a sign, obviously done by a local artist. It read, " green homes for sale in this Asheville burb..."
"Burb"? What does that mean, I wonder. . .
I asked an eco-savvy husband and wife team what about this...and they had to laugh . Their goal is to develop a conservation subdivision. They want to partner with eco-minded people interested in, among other things, eco-innovation, energy efficiency, true-green-built homes, water conservation, and the creation of economic opportunities for the local communities.
Maybe that's what that … (11 comments)
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asheville sustainable real estate: Asheville's GREEN Real Estate- Homes and Land That Can Make You Smile...Oh ThoseEco Friendly Mountain Homes and Land Near Asheville - THE Green Real Estate of Western North Carolina
- 03/22/08 09:40 AM
GREEN is "red hot" in Asheville, North Carolina...GREEN real estate that is. All you have to do is take a look at the demand stats for GREEN homes and you will catch a glimpse of this sizzle right away..I got wondering, IF you could pick just one of the green features below...in building or retrofitting your home... which would it be?
•· Geo-Thermal heating and cooling •· Passive and active solar •· Rainwater collection and pristine community well for drinking water •· Icynene insulation •· On demand Hot Water system with hot water loop •· Sustainable materials throughout •· Low VOC paints, … (7 comments)
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asheville sustainable real estate: 1031 Lunch and Learn with Asheville's Eco-friendly AR Members
- 02/26/08 09:38 AM
UPDATE: October, 2008
With an economic situation with particular challenges at hand, I'm asking 1031 Like-Kind Exchange Guru, Matt Linville to weigh in on this again. And in the meantime, here's an Asheville 1031 review...
Recently, I happened on an article about Lunch and Learn, a program designed to expand training and development for staffers. Lunch and Learn, I discovered ,could work to expand our real estate and real estate services training with a multi- outreach and professional education program. Because we are an Asheville Firm with a focus on 1031 Like-Kind Exchanges, this seemed like a great opportunity for staff and clients alike.
So, we … (18 comments)
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asheville sustainable real estate: Can a "Bigger than Life" Luxury Home still be Eco-savvy?
- 01/30/08 02:51 PM
"Can a "bigger than life" luxury home still be eco-savvy? " you ask. Good Question! And you may already know (or think you know) the answer. Size and function matter when you are talking about environmental impact. In fact, size can be quite a lively, if not controversial subject among the eco-savvy tribes.
But as you consider the relationship between size, and "green" remember that "luxury" real estate may come in many shapes and sizes. There are small footprints with three-stories rising in the trees, there are larger footprints set neatly into the landscape.
There are homes sited to take advantage … (61 comments)
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asheville sustainable real estate: Charlie Rose Moderates a Distinguished Panel on "GREEN" Sustainable Design
- 01/24/08 04:34 PM
Well folks, I sure didn't expect to bump into such an interesting discussion on green building on TV tonight, one that could intrigue a real estate professional and our clients, one looking to the future and noting trends in our industry in terms of sustainable design.
But I did, and I even took a few photos as I watched Charlie Rose moderate a discussion on sustainable design. Most interesting to me, and possibly to you, was that this discussion focused on commercial and residential buildings. ..
The discussion took place right here in North Carolina where sustainable innovation is spurring the imagination … (10 comments)
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You may have guessed by now that besides being a REALTOR® here in Asheville, NC, . . .I'm also an old schoolteacher. So when I got this request to help out a neighborhood elementary school, (see graphic to the left) it set me off on a journey to find out more about living roofs or green roofs and what I/we as REALTORS ®and you might do to help out. . ..
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