USALuxuryGreen.com


When it comes to dollars and cents, energy-efficient, low-E windows and high-performance insulation are a better bang for the average home buyer's buck than shiny hardwood floors. Fortunately, the real estate market is beginning to recognize this factor and started to "Focus on eyes and wallets". Buyers are more likely to pay a premium for green improvements they can see, touch or feel in their wallet.
Energy-saving lighting systems that use watt-sipping compact fluorescent or LED lights can really turn buyers on to a property.
most buyers are likely to flock to the improvements that will save them money in the long run. Energy savings are really one of the driving forces pushing green into the mainstream of home buyers' consciousness.
Most homeowners care about sustainability, but when it comes to money, energy savings is the big seller. Sustainability requires more effort and longer payback periods than energy savings.


Google PowerMeter is a FREE electricity usage monitoring tool that provides you with information on how much energy your home is consuming. Google PowerMeter receives information from utility smart meters and in-home energy management devices and visualizes this information for you on iGoogle (your personalized Google homepage).
Studies show that being able to see your electricity usage in near real time, throughout the day, makes it easier to reduce it and save money. This sort of feedback requires either an advanced electricity meter, a "smart meter," or a consumer-owned electricity management device, and many of today's smart meters don't display information to the consumer. Consumers should have access to data on their personal electricity use, control who gets to see this data and choose from a range of services to help them understand and benefit from this data.


More tips to improve your and the communities around you.
 
1. Green your community:  Most of Los Angeles Westside communities are implementing and/ or expanding green building practices, as well as recycling programs, and environmental protection and conservation ordinances. Check with your city to find out more.

2. Change your LIGHT Bulbs:  Inexpensive and long-lasting compact fluorescent light bulbs use up to 75% less energy and last up to 10 times longer than common household incandescent bulbs. Change a light and you help change the world.

3. Reuse, Reduce, Recycle: Bottles, cans and newspapers often end up in landfills.  Don't forget to use your blue, recycling bins.  You can also keep two trash bins in the home instead of one for easier sorting.

4. Carpool:  We all have places to go and people to see, so try carpooling to work in the morning, or riding the bus or train.

5. Go Solar: Solar panels are increasingly efficient and affordable, and in sunny California just make plain sense. So much so that the city's Water and Power Department and Federal Government offer rebates and tax incentives for residential customers.
Save money by reducing or eliminating your electricity bill:  Solar panel systems will produce electricity during the day and sell excess back to the utility grid. Increase the value of your property: A recent study from the Appraisal Institute showed the selling price of homes and businesses increase by over $20 for every $1 decrease in annual utility bills. Example: for every $6000 investment you will get $10000.
Financial incentives: Cash rebates, tax credits and deductions can pay for up to 30% for residential installations. Positive environmental impact:  A 2.5kW solar system reduces CO2 emissions by an amount similar to that which would occur by planting 1 acre of tress, or the amount of CO2 emitted by a passenger car driving 7,800 miles/year.

6. Green Power: If installing solar panels just isn't possible, try purchasing Green Power from the city. By signing up to be powered by natural sources like sun, wind, and water (electricity that is cleaner than fossil fuels), you can actually help bring more renewable power to LA due to basic supply and demand. For an extra $12.50 per month, the typical homeowner can make sure his or her entire house is powered by windmills.
 
7. Flush Smart: from $30 to more than $160 a year are available for those who opt to replace standard 4-gallon flush toilets with low-flow models that use about half as much water. To save even more, buy dual-flush toilets, or no-flush urinals
 
8. Energy Smart: Buying appliances with the EnergyStar label saves resources, and may give you eligibility for federal tax credits. Check for the symbol on your washer/ dryer, dishwasher, and entire home for that matter. Newer homes that are Energy Star certified will have the logo on the circuit breaker. Check out  www.energystar.gov
 
9. Ban Plastic bottles and bags:  The City of Malibu has banned plastic bags for use by stores and restaurants. Although paper bags are still offered, bringing your own re-useable bag is encouraged.
In addition, last year we consumed about 50 Billion plastic water bottles. Not only do they accumulate and stress landfills where they live on and on, they are made from polyethylene terephthalate (a petroleum product), and their manufacturing process uses oil, a non-renewable energy source that increases CO2 emissions. Try a water filter, refrigerator water dispenser, or Brita system. Next time you head to the coffee shop think about bringing your own mug, and drink from a glass or use a refillable, stainless-steel bottle when you are on the go.
 
10. Check temperatures: Almost half of the energy we use in our homes goes toward heating and cooling. By moving your thermostat(s) down two degrees in winter and up two degrees in summer, you can reduce your home's carbon dioxide emissions 2,000 pounds each year. Changing or cleaning a dirty air filter on your furnace or air conditioner can keep as much as 350 pounds of carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere each year.
 
10. Doggie poop: The Doggie Dooley is a miniature septic tank just for doggie droppings! It's a great solution for dog owners who want to keep their lawn green and not contribute to landfill issues. The Dooley's an inexpensive unit that promises easy installation, no smell, no insects and no ground water pollution. It looks a bit like a miniature trash can, and once installed in your lawn, you only have to lift the lid and dispose of Fido's "little presents" and occasionally sprinkle enzymes into the unit. That's it!
 
12. Wrap your water heater:  Wrap your water heater in an insulation blanket and you'll save 1,000 pounds of carbon dioxide each year according to www.climatecrisis.net or switch to a tankless water heating system or to a solar water-heater.
 
13. Plant trees:  A single tree will absorb one ton of carbon dioxide in its lifetime. A very simple and effective solution.  
 
14.    Buy local fresh food: Frozen foods take ten times more energy to produce and transport. Organic foods spare the world of toxic chemicals and hormones.
 
15. Drive properly: Check your tires as proper tire inflation can improve you car's gas mileage by more than 3 percent.  
 
16. Recycle products:  Help prevent the loss of forests worldwide by using recycled paper and paper products which take 70 to 90 percent less energy to create.
 
17. Eco-Friendly products:  We as consumers must be aware of where products come from and how they're made. When you buy products from local manufacturers that use organic ingredients, are non-toxic, made from natural resources with sustainable materials, you lessen your carbon footprint. And remember to buy in bulk when available.
 
18. Green Clothes:  Organic fabrics from bamboo, seaweed, hemp, soy and corn all have a place in fashion that are here to stay! 
 
19. Voc Free paint:  Paints that are safer for you and the environment are made from natural raw ingredients such as water, plant oils and resins, plant dyes and essential oils, natural minerals such as clay, chalk and talcum, milk casein, natural latex, bees' wax, earth and mineral dyes. Water-based natural paints give off almost no smell. The oil-based natural paints usually have a pleasant fragrance of citrus or essential oils. Smells so good you'll want to paint yourself.
 
20. Junk Mail: For $20 Green Dimes will stop your junk mail, screen your catalogs and even plant five 5 trees for you!  www.greendimes.com  What an Idea?
 
21. Clean Green:  Levels of pollutants in indoor air can be from two to more than 100 times higher than outdoors, according to the U.S. EPA. That indoor pollution is due in large part to volatile organic compounds that evaporate, or gases from home decorating and cleaning products. For tips on cleaning without polluting, go to
 
22. Wash Wisely: Shower with your spouse or a friend when available. And always run full loads and use cold water for clothes, preferably in front-loading machines and hanging to dry when possible. For dryers and dishwashers, run full loads preferably in the evening during warm months, so that your cooling systems aren't working overtime.
 
23. Beach bag:  Take one with you when strolling or lounging on the beach so you can pick up trash along the way. Help keep the ocean clean? and the surfers too! You can check with Surfrider for beach clean-up event.
24. Power strip:   Use power strips or manually unplug DVD players, computers and cell phone chargers to save electricity from vanishing into the dark side. In the average home, 40% of all electricity is used to power home appliances while they're turned off
 
25. Seal your home: Drafty windows and doors, cold walls or ceilings, and high energy bills are all symptoms of air leaks, poor ducting, and lack of insulation. Seal air leaks, add insulation, and choose energy-efficient windows when replacing old ones. That way you'll improve the comfort and durability of your home, save energy and utility costs, and help protect our environment.  
 
26. Spread the word: In every chance you get, and together we can help our homes help us all. Start with friends and family.
 
 27. Green Gardening:  When gardening, try composting to keep the environment from toxic pesticides, urban runoff, and water use.
 
28. Remodel smart your home or office: Use materials that will help you save money in the long term. "Low-VOC paint" means there are no volatile organic compounds in the paint, low energy windows and high-performance insulation are only some examples of items you choose and be sure you made the right choice.

29. Eco happy occasion:  Planning a wedding, birthday, or bat mitzvah? You can make eco choices like using e-vites or recycled-paper invitations, provide a recycle bin for party-goers to toss their empties, and cater with organic foods.
 
30.  Invest in Green:  "Green" industries are rapidly growing. These days many stock portfolios are balanced with eco-conscious investments. There are also rebates and tax incentives for things like energy-efficient appliances, windows, and solar panels, as well as green mortgage options when buying or remodeling green.
 
31. Be Resourceful, Respectful & Responsible:  Being "green" is really a frame of mind, and about being considerate to the health of others, and the health of the environment- whatever you do.





 Owners and developers are now concentrating on retrofitting existing buildings to meet modern standards of sustainability. Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification from the U.S. Green Building Council, and Energy Star certification from the U.S. government ? and achieving them is usually feasible and very often profitable.
It?s getting easier to meet LEED and Energy Star standards, and the result is usually a boost to a building?s bottom line.

Tenants may be willing to pay higher rents for more sustainable buildings and shopping centers. Most tenants lease shopping centers and buildings on a triple-net basis (NNN- where the tenant or lessee agrees to pay all real estate taxes, building insurance and maintenance), so they pay the utilities, so energy-saving design elements keep their costs down. Construction and development costs might be slightly higher if you use the greener standards, but buildings cost of operations range from 25% to 40% lower as a result.
The practical effectiveness of those standards depends largely on the expertise of the building's operators and to a lesser extent, tenants.
If you don't improve your buildings to a good standard, there will be a market penalty.
"We're already at a point where sustainability gives you an edge".

Operating performance is as important as design and construction performance, It comes down to level of knowledge and experience. We can assist you in understanding your consumption, how efficiently you are operating and find the Low and No-Cost opportunities to increase efficiency.
 
We will educate property management teams and end-users. We always searching for technologies to ensure that you have the most cost effective and energy efficient lighting and HVAC and are operating them in the most efficient way. It's not expensive to green your building. In fact, it adds green to your bottom line, through greater net operating income and enhanced value.
One big problem is education and awareness. Getting building tenants and owners to take responsibility for managing their environmental footprint is the biggest challenge.
The Empire State Building, the most iconic building in New York City, and arguably in the whole U.S. is undergoing a sustainability makeover that its owners hope will qualify it for Gold LEED-EB (LEED for Existing Buildings) certification by 2013.
One of many tasks was upgrading the building's 6,500 windows: adding a suspended coated film and a gas fill between the double panes for better installation.
You'd be surprised how much better an old building can be made to perform. This is important because there's demand from investors, government agencies, lenders, stockholders, for more transparency, more reporting and comparison in energy use and environmental impact.