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Building Green- Was Kermit Wrong?
April 17, 2009 /With all the talk since January of inventive incentives to seemingly stimulate everything from hair growth to employment, never mind the pin-striped panhandlers on Wall Street (don't even get me started!), it's been interesting to watch the recent evolution of the environmental movement. From a tree-dwelling band of radical long-hairs with an agenda but little else, the cause has grown to encompass nearly every segment of our consumer-centric society. To paraphrase Chickenman, "It's Everywhere!" From Dr. Bronner's soaps (one of the true originals) to the Toyota Prius, there's been a sea change in perceptions of the impact our daily activities have on the planet. Few consumer products have escaped the scrutiny and benefit of an eco-makeover, with some being truly re-made, while others have received the marketing equivalent of a botox injection- also known as 'Green-washing'. Being green was once a tough sell due to the perception that it was 'difficult', and expensive. As green products and processes have slipped into the mainstream, that position has gradually become harder to defend; especially as the businesses who once protested have come to realize the economic benefits of waste prevention, thoughtful materials utilization, and positive PR. Green has become a critical component…Read more
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The $64,000 Question
April 1, 2009 /I had a client the other day ask me about the real estate market and waiting for the bottom. In this case he was hoping for real estate prices to come down so he could buy at a lower price. I told him that was a great idea, but it is really tough to time the market and that many professionals get that type of thing wrong, so I would be wary of trying. In his case he was looking for a $200,000 house, and a 5% price reduction which represented a $10,000 difference in the cost of the house. We agreed that was a lot of money. However, I told him that if the bottom of the market was already here, and we just didn’t recognize it yet, waiting longer could cost him a bunch more. I explained that once the housing market bottoms and we see the market for homes stabilize, demand will increase and we will probably see a significant amount of buyers since plenty of people have had the same thoughts about waiting for the market to bottom. Because of that we could see prices rise quickly. This would actually not be the most costly part of…Read more
