110502 Green Opportunities from California to Nebraska
Updates from Two States This week on Tuesday's Webinar we will cover 3 items: 1. Review of Andrew, Fred, Victor & Roxy's almost complete Renovation in York Nebraska. This is one unit of a Tri-Plex and will include one of the most efficient heating and cooling systems in North America. (Waaaay more efficient than anything Trane, Carrier or Lennox are offering) (Spoken by a former Dealer of those boxes with built in losses known as "ducts"). 2. Story of how we purchased a property way under asking price by walking away and then coming back in even lower ... and then getting a further haircut. ...Continue Reading!
110510 Line by Line Green Renovation Costs
Green Renovation Budgeting Choices Tonight I'll be summarizing two recent meetings (video-conferences) that illustrate the new concept that we've been talking about: SELLING THEM BEFORE YOU BUY THEM. We initially had met with the clients on site and found that they loved the neighborhood and the home... IF they could have some changes made to accommodate the special needs of their aging parents who are going to be living with them. Then we (Rob, Rogelio & I) spent a couple hours with the design and cost breakdown. We do this item by item on a live Google Docs Spreadsheet and Sketchup while...Continue Reading!
110517 Energy Wise House Flipping Rebates and Incentives
Financing Options Tonight we'll hear about some special financing options. Jack Frost will share about special opportunities available in and around Sacramento plus some other opportunities that are available state wide. When used together these financial boosts can add up to nearly the whole $20,000 of profit that we were shooting for. Definitely worth taking a look at. One of the programs that I hope Jack will review for us includes either 0 percent or 3 percent loan funds available just for the energy package. We don't have to do anything that we haven't been teaching all along. The only requirement is to ally...Continue Reading!
110524 Cost Breakdown of Energy Wise House Flipping
Adjusting the 20-20-20-20-20 Spread This Tuesday we will finish going over the cost breakdown line by line on an actual project that we are working on. We'll also look at another actual project near San Luis Obispo where the investor-renovator is having difficulty with the 20-20-20-20-20 Cliff Notes breakdown. Those are only guidelines and sometimes it costs a little more or a little less ... It depends. We'll discuss that "It depends" -- what it depends on and how to make changes that save money without losing the Wow! or Energy packages that we are depending on to make the model work. BTW...Continue Reading!
DOE (IBACOS) and GEE Project 110606
GEE-Department of Energy Project As you may recall, GEE has teamed up with the Department of Energy through IBACOS as part of 2-3 year Northern CA Test House project. Since 1991 IBACOS (Integrated Building and Construction Solutions) has been a pioneering source of Services and Research for the U.S. homebuilding industry. In the past their testing was primarily on new production housing but given the flooding of the market with previously owned and foreclosed homes, the DOE has substancially altered their focus. GEE's 440 N. Homsy Fresno, CA property will be their first energy efficient remodeled test house. We'll show an overview of the project...Continue Reading!
110615 Wall, Shell Seal Insulation and Blower Door Testing
Update 1810 Norris Drive E. Fresno, CA Flying from Russia to Fresno, Dave will be unavailable again tonight. He will however be speaking in the morning at the Energy Upgrade California - Contractor Participation Workshop on June 24 at the Fresno Convention Center located at 700 M Street, Fresno CA 93721. Click here for more information or click here to register. Tonight we'll be updating the progress at 1810 Norris Drive East, Fresno CA. Rogelio, our project manager will join us to discuss wall and shell seal insulation, literally from the ground up. Will show dozens of pictures taken from video (one of many soon...Continue Reading!
Russia and Green Renovating 110628
Energy Wise Impressions from Russia People ask, "What was your biggest Take-Away from your recent trip to Russia?" Well, this Tuesday I'm going to answer that on our 6:00 webinar. Believe it or not, it has a lot to do with Energy Wise House Flipping. As always, I took a lot of pictures, so you'll see some of the tourist shots as well as a look at some construction, housing and heating systems. Now that Russia is experimenting with Free Enterprise, they are dealing with some of the same things we are: How to finance deals.? How to get started? Who controls...Continue Reading!
Retrofit Wall Insulation – Multiple Choice 110628
Best Retrofit Wall Insulation It has long been known that fiberglass batts (the insulation used in 97% of existing walls) performs at a much lower R factor than what is stamped on the batt. And allows lots of infiltration as well. So what's a PlanetSaver to do? Our new construction colleagues can just specify and do it right in the first place (although most still dont.) In the retrofit market we would rather have an un-insulated wall, because then we could dense pack it with cellulose insulation... a pretty good solution. In our targeted age range of home (30-50 years) most...Continue Reading!
Green Renovation Wars: Intel From The Front Lines 110705
Going Green and Making Green $ Some of the things we'll be discussing: How did you choose this property? What did you like about it? Can you show us the comps that you used? How did you calculate your sell price (ARV)? How much work are you doing yourself? How many subs / vendors? Where did you find them? What is your targeted turn around time? How do you choose your colors and finishes and fixtures? How much of the Wow!, Done, & Energy Packages are you including? What is your Marketing Plan? Retail sale? Will you list the property? Do you think it...Continue Reading!
Increase The Sales Price And Lower Costs 110712
What Can We Do To Increase The Sales Price And Lower The Costs? We got a good start in our interview with Brian Sipp about his project last week. Thanks Brian for being a pioneer! This week we'll continue analyzing this project as it nears completion and is getting ready to sell: Discussion topics to consider: What is the ARV? How was it determined? We'll look at comps. How much extra credit is given to the Energy Package? The Wow? Is there any way to push the value higher? Do you need a 100% retail sale NOW? When to put up the...Continue Reading!
By Dave Robinson
By Jack Frost
By Andrew Martinez
By Debra Little