Wednesday, December 30, 2009

Now this is a Real Tree Change


Ever wanted to live on a mountain and still be within 30 minutes of the CBD?


Wished your kids could walk to school and you could watch them walk home form your front door?


Wanted to wake up to the sound of Bellbirds?


Dreamed of running a funky coffee shop for the passing tourist trade?


Maybe a natural therapies Centre high in the hills?


Then this may be the place for you..........................

Wednesday, December 16, 2009

Sustainability Declaration - how many questions


Add ImageSection one of the new Sustainability Declaration is all about the Energy Efficiency of your home:
Questions like how many out of the total number of lights in your home are energy efficient.
Do you have solar power, Gas, air conditioning, pool or spa, what type of hot water system, insulation where and what type, window glazing , roof colour, roof ventilation and ceiling fans.
Section two is aboout Water and has 7 questions:
Is there a rainwater tank and what size?, greywater, water recirculation,shower heads, type of taps,dual flush toilets,garden irrigation.
Section three is about Access:
and has six questions - entry level, steps etc, level access to bathrooms and toilets and living areas, grab rails in bathroom and level entry to shower, toilet grab rails, wide doorways and wide hallways. Very pertinent for an aging population
Section four:
Safety five questions :
Smoke alarm installed (on standard REIQ contract anyway), Electrical safety switch also on standard REIQ contract, Pool fence maintained, Hot water system tempering device installed, Property number clearly visible from street (for emergency services)
The questions are set out simply and are easy to answer and very logical and the type of things we should know about our new homes.
There is also a column on the right that tells you what the savings for various things are.
As I mentioned before there has been some opposition to this form and there are petitions circulating right now to stop or curb it - I think we all need to get on board and support this initiative it takes not too long to complete (yes my husband and I did it for our house - it took about 20 minutes plus a few minutes searching receipts and paper work to confirm a few things and fill in the kilowatt usage from which you calculate your green house gas emissions).
Go to the website and check out the form and then give it a go fill it in and see how your house rates. Then get back here or go to my facebook page and let me know how you did.
If you have joined The Green Streets forums you will have no problem answering these questions.
Until next time
Angela

Tuesday, December 15, 2009

A Perfect Example ......

This beautiful lowset home may look like many other lovely properties in Samford Valley and that is the thing about sustainable homes they look just like less sustainable ones.

This home has four bedrooms, three living areas and all the modern conveniences but with a water tank installed and hooked up to a tap in the kitchen for drinking water, solar hot water, solar panels for electricity, cardiff air and ducted air conditioning there are some amazing savings to be made.

For example having a water tank installed could save you up to 70000 litres per year or 26% of an average household water consumption.

A solar hot water system can save you up to $346 per year or 26% of an average household consumption. and the solar power panels a whopping saving of $546 per year or 42% of average consumption.

The new sustainability declaration that comes into effect on January 1st will tell what features your prospective new home has in place and the handy information on the form will give you an indication of how much your new home will cost to run.

There are a lot of Real Estate Agents complaining about the Sustainability Declaration - but you'll hear none of that here. Being accountable for the impact our lifestyles have on the planet is something we should all be aware of. There may be some who will do nothing more about it but for some it will be the deciding factor in their next home purchase.

For more information visit the Department of Infrastrcuture and Planning's website http://www.dip.qld.gov.au/ or post your question here in the comments and I will find the answers for you.

Until next time - always here to help

Angela