A bill was recently passed providing many provisions for realtors and home buyers.  The energy efficient housing tax credits and grants promote green jobs and energy independence; ARRA invests in efforts to make homes and buildings more energy efficient.

This bill provides state and local governments with grants to perform energy audits, retrofits and income tax credits.  Through 2010, homeowners will be able to claim a 30% tax credit for purchases of new energy efficient furnaces, windows and insulation.

Home owners can apply for this on their income tax return; qualifying home improvements must be completed between January 1, 2009 and December 31, 2010 and they must be performed on the tax payer’s principal residence.  Some second homes can qualify for certain improvements including geothermal heat pumps, solar water heaters, solar panels and small wind energy systems.

A maximum of $1,500 can be claimed for this credit for 2009 and 2010 home improvements.  New home construction credits can be claimed for geothermal heat pumps, photo-voltaic, solar water heaters, small wind energy systems and fuel cells, but not the tax credits for windows, doors, insulation, roofs, HVAC, or non-solar water heaters.

Use the IRS Tax Form 5695 to calculate your energy credit for home repairs in 2009 and 2010.

Funding will be available to update the nation’s electricity grid and to install smart meters on homes to help save consumers money.  Additional funding will assist low-income households with weatherization assistance and to fund federally assisted housing (Section efficiency efforts.

Other provisions of the Stimulus Plan include:

First Time Homebuyer Tax Credit

FHA, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac Loan Limits

Neighborhood Stabilization

Commercial Real Estate

Rural Housing Services

Low Income Housing Grants

Tax Exempt Housing Bonds

Transportation Investments

Broadband Deployment

Professional real estate agents should be familiar with the various tax incentive and credits available to home buyers and home owners.  These credits are helpful to first-time home buyers who, quite often, are not aware of the programs they could be utilizing.  A professional real estate person can advise their clients of these helpful programs to assist them in their real estate investing or home buying experience.

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As the temperature drops, proper central heating becomes more and more important.  Ensuring that your central heating system is working correctly should be a top priority for you and your family with a single faulty part capable of ruining your winter holiday season.  There are a number of issues that can surface during the cold winter months.  One common issue is frost damage, which can harm boilers and pipes, preventing them from working efficiently. 

In previous years, the central heating system was designed with the frost thermostat located near the boiler.  Its job was to start the boiler when the air temperature dropped and stop the boiler when the air temperature reached an acceptable level.  If the thermostat detected excessive heat escaping from the boiler or surrounding pipes it quickly turned off the system, in order to conserve energy and prevent excessive heating of the home.

A new development in insulation materials for central heating systems has made the frost thermostat's job much more challenging.  Modern boilers and pipes are much more insulated than their older counterparts.  Energy conservation was the goal of this alteration; unfortunately the problem of overheating persists.  The frost thermostat is no longer able to detect changes in temperature accurately.  As such, overheating and energy waste continue to occur.

Installing a pipe thermostat can solve this problem.  A pipe thermostat is typically placed on the outside of the boiler return pipe, measuring the temperature of the pipe (assuming copper pipes are good heat conductive materials).  Its purpose is to turn off the boiler before overheating occurs.  There are several new products that contain both a frost thermostat and low limit pipe thermostat, providing standard room temperature setting capabilities along with frost protection capabilities.

Installation and set up of these new thermostats is simple and quite intuitive.  Guidelines for complete wiring and installation arrive in the kit, ensuring simple installation.  The frost thermostat is usually set to 5C and the pipe thermostat is commonly set to 25C.  Additional pipe thermostats can be bought for other exposed pipes, to further insure that your system is completely protected.

If the pipe thermostat fails to meet your needs, there are other solutions.  A fully programmable room thermostat is one option.  These devices can be installed in a number of locations throughout your home, usually in a living room or bedroom.  Their job is to measure and monitor the temperature of the room.  The thermostat can be set to change the room temperature several times a day, depending on the homeowner's needs.  There are several kits that operate by means of radio signal, from the thermostat to the boiler.  These Radio Frequency (RF) thermostats require no wiring, which makes them very easy to install.

Thermostats are an important element of your home heating system but, there are other variables that impact your heating efficiency.  By sectioning the home off into zones, waste can be avoided.  The use of zones, allows you to focus the heat where you need it most.  More populated areas can be kept warmer than empty rooms that do not require as much heating.  This minor change can produce great results.  Not only will heating bills be lower but, system efficiency will be greatly improved.

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Today, the cost of electricity is becoming increasing unaffordable. In such a case, there is a need for more cost-efficient and cleaner sources of energy.

Solar energy is one such energy. You can save up to 80% on your electricity bill by using solar energy. Besides, using solar energy does not cause any emission of carbon dioxide. However, harvesting solar power requires heavy initial investment. Purchasing a solar power generator is an expensive proposition. It easily costs around $3000. Add to that, cost of solar panel installation.

But you need not despair, you can cut down these expenses drastically by getting DIY solar panels. Do- It-Yourself solar panels come very cheap (around $200) and are not difficult to install if you have a basic idea of how to do it.

For installation, you will need:

1. An instructional guide book

2. Solar cells

3. Plywood

4. Strong sheets of glass

You can download a good instructional guidebook from the Internet. The guide will teach you how to make and install DIY solar panels. Other materials can be easily bought from any local hardware store or a company specializing in DIY solar panel kits.

DIY solar panel construction consists of five basic parts:

1. Panel tray and frame

2. Absorber plate

3. Copper tubing

4. Insulation

5. Glazing

Solar cells are placed across the plywood board in rows. The cells are then connected to each other using wires looping through the back of the plywood. To secure the wires together, reinforce this construction with another plywood board. Place a glass sheet on top and put a wooden frame around the entire arrangement. The glass prevents loss of heat in cold weather. Thus, efficiency of solar cell panels does not diminish in cool conditions. You can also use acrylic sheets for covering solar panels. They are cheaper and lighter than glass. Your DIY solar panels are ready to function.

Once the construction of is complete, they should be stored in a safe place until they are required. They should be placed in an upright position so that the tube outlet and inlet are not be damaged.

Normally two to three solar panels of area 1500mm by 900mm are sufficient to provide electricity for an average household.

Solar panels have a life span of over 20 years. Since the system does not have any moving parts, there is no wear and tear. You only occasionally need to check the panels to ensure that the glass is not cracked and there is no leak.

Solar cell panels are very efficient (approximately 50%). They help both, you and the environment, in long run.

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By now everyone knows that you can save fuel and minimize tire wear by keeping them properly inflated and rotating them regularly. But to make the next big leap in fuel efficiency, drivers can take advantage of next-generation energy efficient tires being rolled out by several industry leaders including Michelin, Goodyear, Continental and Toyo.

How much can you save?

Goodyear advertises their Assurance FuelMax tires will provide up to 4 percent more fuel efficiency than standard tires. This could very well be a conservative estimate when you consider a story on iStockAnalyst's website. It chronicled how economy driving champions, Helen and John Taylor, squeezed out an additional 9 miles per gallon just by switching to a set of Goodyear Assurance FuelMax tires.

Recent manufacturer’s tests have also shown that Michelin’s Energy Saver A/S tires offer a whopping 8 percent better fuel efficiency than competing tires. When you do the math, this translates to a savings of about a hundred dollars at the pump every year. (More if fuel prices continue to rise above $2.50/gal.) After the first year, the fuel savings should more than offset the slightly higher initial price of these advanced tires.

Handling

In the past, tire builders could decrease rolling resistance and improve fuel efficiency by increasing the mix of silica in their rubber compounds. But the more they improved economy, the more performance and even tire life decreased. More silica makes a tire harder and less flexible which decreases traction and cornering ability. But thanks to new advanced formulations, silica distribution strategies, and break-thru tread designs (some engineered from the molecular level-up), these new tires save fuel without sacrificing tire wear, all-weather traction and most importantly, safety. In fact, some of these new tires like the Michelin Energy Saver A/S have actually improved stopping distance -- by as much as 8 feet over standard tires, and decreased tire wear – resulting in an additional 16,000 miles of useable life over their standard tires.

A Greener Tire

Increasing fuel efficiency means that these tires also reduce harmful CO2 emissions. A typical car spews over 14,000 pounds of CO2 during the course of a year. Michelin estimates that installing a set of their Energy Saver A/S tires reduces CO2 emissions as much as 2,000 pounds per year -- or about the same as planting 40 trees! When was the last time you could cut your carbon footprint without sacrificing performance or safety, and save money at the same time?

Consult a Professional

Most major tire retailers and chains should now have energy saving tires in stock. Also they will have the training, experience and computerized tools to help you quickly determine the best brand, size and style of tire for your vehicle, driving style…and your budget.  Keep in mind, to achieve maximum performance and avoid uneven tire wear, you will need to replace all 4 tires at the same time, especially on all-wheel and four-wheel drive vehicles.

Also be sure to ask if they have nitrogen inflation. Nitrogen helps maintain proper tire pressure (psi) longer and with less fluctuation in tire pressure due to temperature changes. After all, fuel saving tires can’t save much fuel (or last as long as they should) if they are under inflated.

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Rising cost of energy and the need to preserve our valued natural resources, a sustainable home is becoming a highly considerable and more efficient option. Energy efficient homes demonstrate improved energy, resource and water efficiency, which in turn reduces your household running costs and greenhouse gas emissions into the environment.

By building a new home with UrbanEdge GreenSmart technologies you can reap the long-term benefits such as lower energy and water bills, for years to come. While all UrbanEdge Homes achieve the standard 5-star energy rating, the company’s new eco friendly house and land packages takes sustainability to the next level, by making use of the latest in energy efficient and environmentally sustainable principles. UrbanEdge eco friendly display homes combine stand-out modern house plans with environmental excellence to achieve a minimum 7-star rating or higher.

UrbanEdge home builders took building a home to the next level for their eco friendly display homes are designed to minimize the use of heating and cooling equipments. Through careful solar positioning on the site the suns energy is maximize throughout the year, while natural ventilation methods are utilized to circulate air in and around the home. Effective insulation is used to prevent heat loss and heat gain through walls, roofs, and floors, while heat loss through windows is reduced through high-performance glazing. UrbanEdge green display homes are fitted with fluorescent lighting, a rainwater tank, and gas-boosted solar hot water system for increased water and energy efficiency.

With UrbanEdge Homes you will not only achieve environmentally responsible affordable homes that is cleaner and healthier for you and your family to live in, but you will also be able to enjoy a comfortable lifestyle with cheaper running costs.

Visit http://www.urbanedgehomes.com.au today and help change the world we live in by starting with your home.

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