Ever since the federal income tax was introduced in 1913, the government has used the tax code to encourage homeownership. Now, as a result of the effort to reduce the federal deficit, the mortgage interest deduction is under fire. Proposed changes to the tax code...
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As my friend Mac Pierce likes to point out: you could get a blindfolded drunk epileptic to cross Niagara Falls on a high wire without a net, but it wouldn’t be a good idea. There are some wall assemblies that are like that. One in...
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Getting ready to paint a wall? Don’t skip the prep work: A properly primed surface makes all the difference. Clean the walls Using a large cellulose sponge and a solution of water mixed with a few drops of mild dishwashing liquid, clean your walls to remove any...
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Loren Steffy’s story in the Houston Chronicle does a good job of describing how good mortgage laws in Texas helped Texas’ housing values hold up in the face of this country’s worst recession since the Great Depression. While many people in states like California, Florida, Nevada...
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Check out these great tools for your business from HousingZone.com iHandy Carpenter – iHandy Soft There are five tools in this carpenter tool kit: plumb bob, surface level, bubble level bar, steel protractor, and steel ruler. $1.99 Spacing Calc – By Laurie Davis Siding a wall, shingling a roof, laying...
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In an article on BuildingScience.com – Building Science Insights – Seeing Red Over Green Roofs – Joseph Lstiburek talks about how Building Green is a huge misnomer…and that it is a sensitive subject with many builders. “It is dumb to do a green roof to save...
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[caption id="attachment_102" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Credit: Courtesy Joon-Ho Choi"][/caption] While he was a university student, Joon-Ho Choi worked in a hospital, where he noticed that patients—especially those in intensive care—rarely have much control over their environments. “They are subjected to temperature and lighting conditions that are set...
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[caption id="attachment_105" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Rich Testa of RE/MAX Advance"][/caption] When Robert and Marguerite Antell told architect James Johnson they wanted to build a fun, artistic home, he handed the couple a coke bottle with a flowering sprig of Queen Anne’s lace. “This is your new home,”...
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Throughout the United States, thousands of students are spending the majority of the day in unhealthy and aging portable classrooms. Not only is their presence required, students are expected to thrive and flourish educationally in such environments. “The aging infrastructure of K–12 schools throughout the...
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A survey of home buyers shows that spec-home customers are much less satisfied than those purchasing “to-be-built” homes. Customer-satisfaction expert Charlie Scott offers tips for driving referrals from your inventory home buyers. By Charlie Scott, Woodland, O’Brien and Scott – August 7, 2011 – HousingZone.com In a market...
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