June 06, 2007

The Skystream 3.7, manufactured by Southwest Power, Inc, is one of the first small wind generators designed specifically for residential use. Developed in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Energy, Skystream powers your home when the wind is blowing and lets your utilities take over when it is not. $12,000 including installation.

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March 30, 2007

OH, PLEASE, GOD, JUST LET ME GET OUT OF THIS WITH WHAT LITTLE HAIR I HAVE LEFT....

In a speech detailing the merits of the Community Reinvestment Act, Fed chair Ben Bernanke had some interesting comments:

Third, access to credit in lower-income communities is obviously much greater today than when the CRA was enacted. This greater access has had tangible benefits, such as the increase in homeownership rates (Joint Center for Housing Studies, 2006). However, recent problems in mortgage markets illustrate that an underlying assumption of the CRA--that more lending equals better outcomes for local communities may not always hold.12 Whether, and if so, how to try to differentiate "good" from "bad" lending in the CRA context is an issue that is likely to challenge us for some time. One possible strategy is to place more weight in CRA examinations on factors such as whether an institution provides services complementary to lending--for example, counseling and financial education.

This is as close as you probably will ever get to hearing Bernanke or anyone else admit that the ocean of credit extended to the subprime markets was a prime factor for inflating home purchasing in the last half-decade.

It's also a prime signal that banks and lenders are going to tighten things up for the foreseeable future. Less available credit = fewer new home buyers = fewer home sales = flattening market.

The Center for Responsible Lending has a new study out which indicates that even the saw about available credit increasing homeownership is false. Instead, they claim that the subprime market was chiefly targeted to refinancing existing loans rather than originating new ones. It makes sense when you think about it--how often did you hear and read about people swapping their fixed loans for fancy new interest-only products without much in the way of documentation or money down?

The housing boom and bust was a tremendous example of letting short-term thinking and the desire for easy profits trump responsibility, frugality, and accountability. Now we have a sagging, fragile economy, millions of homeowners in foreclosure or default, lenders going belly-up like dying whales, and the creeping fear that it will get worse before it gets better.

That Bernanke has his Jesus moment now is convenient, and not particularly impressive, to say the least.

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June 19, 2006

"Someday - and that day may never come - I'll call upon you to do a service for me...."

The Consumer Federation of America has declared war on the NAR. I can't tell you how great it is to see something like this in major media. Every blow struck in favor of alternative listing services, FSBOs, and the like is a victory for home owners, home buyers, and everyone else who wants to control the biggest financial transaction of their lives. Realtors can benefit from this as well...when all of the fakes, charlatans, and scumbags are cleared out of the market, the good ones will be able to flourish without having the negative stereotype hanging over them.

Of course, for there to be buyers and brokers, there has to be a market, and right now things aren't looking so good. But perhaps the financial pain we're about to go through will help push out everyone who thought flipping overpriced condos and fixer-uppers was the true and holy path to riches. It had best be the case, because otherwise things're looking gloomier by the moment.

Donald Kohn is the latest appointee to the Federal Reserve. Note the heavy emphasis on "containing inflation," even at the risk of a "slowing economy." I don't suppose they're really paying any serious attention to the growing tales of ph3r and loathing in the housing market...

Posted at 05:51 PM | TrackBack

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May 14, 2006

If there's an upside to the housing market sagging like Bea Arthur's bustline, it's that the desires of homeowners and buyers to be more informed, knowledgeable, and savvy about the ins and outs of real estate has led to an explosion of Web-based real estate information.

Inman, for instance, tells us that traffic to Web-based real estate sites has been skyrocketing of late. D.C. uber-blogger Rob Goodspeed has a great round up of District-based blogs and Web sites that cover real estate. And, of course, you have sites like Zillow, ZipRealty, Google Base, and Craigslist that provide the user with the tools they need to make the transaction themselves--with varying degrees of success.

I couldn't go without mentioning the many fantastic bloggers and writers who have blazed an incredible trail in providing (to coin our own blog's slogan) "news, analysis, and opinion" for millions of real estate-minded folks around the country, if not the world. Everyone from Bubble Meter to Ben Jones to Marinite has done their part (and then some) to bring the issue of overvalued housing and inflated markets to the public's attention. I'm humbled to be in their ranks, because they do amazing work (for little or no pay), and keep people informed in ways the traditional media just can't or won't.

This current bubble resembles the cycles of bubbles past, true, but it is different in a lot of ways as well. Not only due to the excessive flow of cheap money and bad loans onto the market :), but in the availability of information and knowledge that was never there before. Every state or region has at least one blogger or Web site covering the real estate market in gory detail. Even the realtors themselves are getting in on the action, from the Real Estate Bloggers to NAR's own increased usage of Web sites

Of course, all of these people will have divergent viewpoints, and that's the beauty of it! You can sift through the blogs, read what's being said, and (to coin another phrase) "make up your own damn mind" in a way you never could in previous cycles. No matter where the bubble actually leads--boom, bust, froth, crash, or moderate landing--the end result is that (hopefully) buyers and sellers are smarter and better informed now at any time in the past. And that, as they say, is a good thing.

(No, this isn't a "sign off" post, and I'm not going away. :) I'm just in a markedly optimistic mood, which is rare, giving the amount of depressing info I read about housing on a daily basis. :))

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August 30, 2005

Until recently, finding a source to fill up your natural gas car was anything but convenient. Pumps are hard to find, with many pumps operated by govermental and state agencies and private companies. Now, Fuelmaker of Toronto manufactures a home-fueling system called the Phill.

Phill is the world's first appliance that lets you refuel your natural gas vehicle indoors or outdoors from your household natural gas line.

Here are questions and answers about home fueling your natural gas powered vehicle:

Q. How do you fill up at home?

A. The Phill delivers natural gas from your line and compresses it (from a quarter-pound per square inch to about 3,600 p.s.i.) into the tank of your natural gas car. The Phil mounts to a wall - it is about three feet high and a foot wide, and is made by Fuelmaker of Toronto. It takes about eight hours to fill the tank of a Honda Civic GX.

Q. What's does the appliance cost?

A. A Phill is $3,400, plus $500 to $1,000 for installation, but in Southern California the South Coast Air Quality Management District provides a $2,000 rebate. Honda also leases the unit for $34 to $79 a month. The federal government provides a $2,000 tax deduction for natural gas cars (as well as for hybrids), with a more generous tax credit to take effect next year. Also, some states and municipalities offer their own incentives. New York State recently extended a credit for up to half of the cost of installing any alternative-energy refueling station.

Q. Does natural gas save you money?

A. The equivalent of a gallon of gasoline is now $1.27 in Southern California, and the electricity to operate a Phill for eight hours is about 50 cents in Orange County, where regular gas is nearly $3 a gallon. Home fueling is now exempt from federal and state highway taxes, though that may change.

Q. Is natural gas dangerous?

A. Phill does not store gas, so fueling is quite safe. Studies by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory found the system to be no more dangerous than any household appliance that uses natural gas.

Q. If I'm not at home, can I find a station?

A. There are natural gas pumps in many urban areas, though access to some is restricted. For instance, there are 61 within 100 miles of New York City, and about half can be used by the public.

Lists and maps of stations are at www.eere.energy.gov/afdc/.

Posted at 09:05 AM

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If your the type who hates to clean, then the Roomba may just the thing for you. Cleans wood, tile linoleum, and low-to-medium pile carpet while you’re watching Monday Night Football.

$279.99 at Amazon.com

Posted at 02:07 AM

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