CREIG SAYS...

Dear Friend:

Did you know that the typical U.S. family spends more than $1,600 a year on home utility bills? Unfortunately, a large portion of that energy is wasted. The good news is there is a lot you can do to save energy and money at home. Earth Day is April 22nd. Start making small changes today (see the tips below) and you can cut your energy use up to 25%.

Energy-efficient improvements not only make your home more comfortable, they can yield long-term financial rewards. Reduced utility bills more than make up for the higher price of energy-efficient appliances and improvements over their lifetimes. In addition, your home could bring in a higher price when you sell. The easy, practical solutions for saving energy include tips you can use today, throughout your home—from the roof, walls, and insulation that enclose it--to the appliances and lights inside. Please, take a few moments to read the valuable tips to start saving energy and money today.

The Northrop Team is GOING GREEN! – Starting next week we'll be taking one of many steps to reduce the amount of paper we use on a daily basis. We will now be sending our 45 Day Listing Checkup form, as well as our Customer Satisfaction Questionnaire electronically.

For other tips, savings, and home selling advice, stop by our booth at this weekend's Carroll County Home Show at the Agricultural Center. And if you want in-depth information on the Carroll County & Frederick County real estate market—you will not want to miss our upcoming real estate seminars. See below for dates, times and locations!


Creig Northrop
President

·  To view Northrop Team listings, click here.

·  To view Northrop Team Open Houses, click here.

GOING GREEN: EASY DOES IT

The key to achieving these savings in your home is to take a whole-house approach, view your home as an energy system with interdependent parts. For example, your heating system is not just a furnace—it's a heat-delivery system that starts at the furnace and delivers heat throughout your home using a network of ducts. Even a top-of-the-line, energy-efficient furnace will burn a lot of fuel if the ducts, walls, attic, windows, and doors are not insulated and leak. Taking a whole-house approach to saving energy ensures that dollars you invest to save energy are spent wisely.

Think of a house as a consumer — and a greedy one at that. About 21 percent of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions are generated from household energy use, according to the Energy Information Administration.

A house that consumes less energy reduces greenhouse gases because less fossil fuel is required to operate it. Energy and water savings mean financial savings, too.

So if you are looking to save money, conserve energy, and help the environment, here are some simple greening options, along with more advanced approaches you can use:

1) Improve Energy Efficiency

Easy: Replace incandescent bulbs with compact fluorescent bulbs. Compact fluorescent bulbs produce the same amount of light as incandescent bulbs yet require 75 percent less energy, produce 75 percent less heat, and last up to 10 times longer. Switching out just the five most frequently used lights in your house can save as much as 0.3 kilowatts of energy a day, which translates into a savings of at least $30 per bulb over the lifetime of the CFLs.

Advanced: Switch to solar power. This clean energy source generates no air pollution and no noise. Panels installed today will produce energy for about 20 years with minimal maintenance. The federal government offers a tax credit of 30 percent of the installation cost, to a maximum of $2,000, for certain solar power features, and many states and municipalities offer additional incentives.

2) Reduce Drafts

Easy: Plug leaks. Caulk and add weather-stripping to windows and doors to stop heat and air conditioning losses. Use expanding foam to fill gaps, especially between the living space and unheated areas such as the attic and garage. Leaky air ducts can decrease energy efficiency by as much as 20 percent.

Advanced: Add insulation. Homes more than 10 years old probably have insufficient insulation, and even newer houses typically can use some improvement. Properly insulated houses not only use less energy, they also have better moisture control, meaning roofs and walls last longer. In addition to insulating outside walls and attics, owners should install insulation in basement walls, floors above unheated garages or porches, cathedral ceilings, and crawl spaces.

3) Appliance Excesses

Easy: Unplug chargers, power adapters, and appliances when they're not in use. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, about 75 percent of the electricity used to power electronics such as VCRs, televisions, stereos, computers, and kitchen appliances is consumed while the products are turned off.

Advanced: Switch out older appliances — including dish and clothes washers, refrigerators, lighting fixtures, televisions, room air conditioners, and even cordless phones — with energy-saving models. Appliances with the government-rated Energy Star label use 25 percent to 75 percent less energy than unrated appliances.

4) Avoid Super-Hot Water

Easy: Lower your water heater temperature. The average tank style water heater uses about 5 percent less energy for every 10 degrees Fahrenheit you reduce the temperature, according to the Department of Energy. A lower temperature also slows mineral buildup and corrosion, which helps your water heater perform more efficiently over a longer time.

Advanced: Install tankless water heaters. These so-called "on-demand" heaters warm water only when required, reducing energy losses associated with maintaining water temperatures in a traditional storage tank. Tankless heaters range from $200 for an under-sink faucet unit to $1,500 for a high-capacity unit, but according to the Energy Department, they use 45 percent to 60 percent less energy than traditional heaters and last twice as long.

This article was published on: 02/01/2008 in Realtor magazine

Please Join Us For Our
Real Estate: Open Forum
Talk with the Experts

CARROLL COUNTY
Saturday, April 19th
10am to 12 pm
Creig Northrop/Long & Foster Real Estate, Inc Office
(behind Amante's Restaurant)
25 Liberty Rd
Eldersburg, MD
*There is ample parking directly in front of the office

FREDERICK COUNTY
Saturday, May 10th
10am to 12 pm
The Frederick Cultural Arts Center
Across from The Weinberg Theater
15 West Patrick Street
Frederick, MD 21701

Click Here to Register Today

Attention Carroll County & Howard County Parents, Teachers, Faculty, and Staff!!!

Don't forget to nominate deserving students for the 2008 Unsung Hero Award. Deadline for entries is April 15th. Click Here for nomination forms or visit your local high school guidance office. Awards Ceremony is May 14th at the Ten Oaks Ballroom in Clarksville, MD.

• 1st place winner will be awarded $1,000 & a trophy
• 2nd place winner will be awarded $500 & a trophy
• 3rd place winner will be awarded $250 & a trophy
• The remaining 9 finalists will be awarded $100 and a plaque

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