Arlington, MA

The Colonial Village Condos in Arlington MA are some of the least expensive condominiums in Arlington Massachusetts and excellent opportunities for first time real estate buyers.

Built in 1962, Colonial Village is on Colonial Village Drive off Lowell Street. The complex consists of 144 condos in a dozen three-story 12-unit brick buildings (it's a gross of condos!).

In the center of the complex is an outdoor pool. There is outdoor parking for residents but there is no guest parking. Most units come with one or two parking spaces.

In each building there are four apartments per floor. The first floor units are partially below grade. Smaller one-bedroom condos are approximately 420 - 440 sq. ft. Larger condos, configured as one or two-bedrooms, are in the 640 - 665 sq. ft. range. All the condos have one bath. Many have hardwood floors.

Many of the units have been renovated over the years. Others can be found in original condition with retro charm.

Current condo fees are approximately $250 to $350 per month and include heat and hot water.

Shopping and Recreation Near Colonial Village

Arlington's popular swimming hole, the Arlington Reservoir - the "Res", is just down Lowell Street. The well-used Minuteman Bike Path is close by. The Crescent Hill Historic District is not far and the Arlington Heights shops along Mass Ave are an easy walk. Brigham's, a wonderful 5 and 10, a hardware store, Panera Bread and more can be found in the Heights shopping district. Trader Joe's is in one direction, Stop and Shop and Foodmaster in the other.

Colonial Village Condo Sales and Rentals

In 2008 Colonial Village sales included:

• A first floor four-room two-bedroom condo, 635 s.f., sold for $145,000
• A second floor three-room one-bedroom condo, 667 s.f., with two parking spaces, sold for $195,000
• A first floor four-room, two-bedroom condo, 642 s.f. sold for $176,000

2009 sales include:

• A 665 s.f. four-room two-bedroom on the 3rd floor sold for $158,000
• A 638 s.f. four-room two-bedroom on the 1st floor sold for $142,500

Rents at Colonial Village are in the $1,000 to $1,200 per month range.

CHECK FOR ARLINGTON CONDOS FOR SALE AT COLONIAL VILLAGE

SEARCH THE MLS FOR ARLINGTON REAL ESTATE

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Elizabeth Bolton is a real estate agent at Coldwell Banker on Huron Avenue in Cambridge and works with real estate buyers and sellers in Arlington, Belmont, Cambridge, Medford, Somerville, Watertown and nearby communities. Contact Liz at 617-504-1737 for more information about the Colonial Village Condos in Arlington MA 02474.

I already knew this from my EcoBroker course and the research I've been doing, but now my (new) favorite channel, Planet Green, has show after show confirming it - you don't have to spend a lot more money in order to buy eco-friendly housing. If you're building anew or remodeling, follow the three R's - reuse, renovate, and recycle - and you'll spend maybe even less than your original budget to be eco- and energy-friendly. In both cases, you'll more than make up for it on the back-end with reduced utility bills, greater home comfort, and improved personal health.

Wanna do it? Wanna buy an eco-friendly home and reduce your ecological footprint? Here's how to go about it:

1. Shameless self-promotion first - hire a qualified real estate agent with a green designation, such as the Certified EcoBroker or NAR's GREEN designations. We're trained to help you deal with issues and find expert resources in areas such as indoor air quality, moisture/mold/mildew, asbestos removal, and we can even help you find lenders who are familiar with the extra mortgage features for energy-efficient homes that are available in the market today.
2. Next, if you're buying, go out and find a home you like. Your Realtor will be able to help you find all the homes in your area with the eco-friendly features that are important to you.
3. So now you've found the home you want to buy, or you want to rehab/remodel your current place, the first step in the formal process is to have an energy audit conducted. The audit will list, in priority order, what projects should be undertaken to make the home more energy-efficient. You can find a list of qualified home energy raters at the Residential Energy Services Network (RESNET) web site.
4. Follow the recommendations as outlined in the energy audit - be sure to have professionally trained contractors perform the work where necessary (such as asbestos removal). Even something as simple as using low VOC (volatile organic compounds) paints can help make your home greener by eliminating many of the chemicals emitted from standard paint.
   
5. If the work has required the use of contractors, they will be paid by the mortgage company out of the escrow funds your lender setup when you got an Energy Efficient mortgage. What? Don't know about EEMs? See my previous blog post for more info.
6. If your plans from the audit didn't include solar, geothermal, or wind power, you can still take advantage of green power by switching your electricty source with your local provider. Just call your provider and tell them you want to buy a portion or all of your electricity from green sources. They can give you all the details when you call.
7. If you did install any of the alternative power methods noted in #6, also be sure to check with your state for appropriate rebates and incentives. You can find a database of the state rebates and incentives at the DSIRE web site.
8. After all those inside improvements, it's time to look outside to see what you can do - try some landscaping to help with natural heating and cooling patterns of the seasons. Deciduous trees (those that lose their leaves in the fall) are best planted along the southern side of the home - this way they provide shade from the heat in the summer and they allow the sun in during the winter to add some heat to the home. Plant firs and pines to the north-northeast to act as windbreaks, especially during those winter nor'easters we're all familiar with (most of us anyway).
9. Don't forget some composting or even water reclamation. In my hometown of Arlington, MA, the town annually sells blue rainwater barrels for homeowners to use to collect the rain, which is then used for watering gardens, washing cars, etc.

Ha! I'll bet you thought I might end with a "Top 10" list here, but I like to be unconventional and will stop at #9.

But where's the money savings? First, your utility bills will be reduced, keeping more money in your pocket every month. Next, many energy improvements are eligible for federal and state tax incentives or rebates. For example - in Massachusetts, the portion of land on which a solar array or wind turbine is located is not subject to state property tax for 20 YEARS after installation! Imagine covering your backyard with solar panels and not paying any tax on your yard! Well, don't imagine that maybe - your neighbors wouldn't like you and you'd never be able to have a cookout. But you get the idea.

See? Not so hard after all, is it? For more ideas and links to Eco-Friendly partners in the Boston/Cambridge/Arlington Massachusetts area, visit my web site at CyberGreenRealty.com.

Until next time, Peace!

-TMC

I'm slightly off-focus in this entry, wanting to talk about purchasing green power as opposed to the more activity-oriented approaches upon which I've been writing. And since I just signed up for this myself today, I can attest to the ease with which you can make the switch yourself to clean energy.

Let's look at some of the reasons people don't go with clean energy already:

• Sometimes homeowners are unwilling to make the technological leap and be one of the first to try out a "new" technology (even though solar has been available for decades).
  
• For others, it's still too cost-prohibitive to have the necessary audits and evaluations done, or they just think it's too complicated to install an active or passive solar system or a geothermal pump (well, I'll give them the pump thing...).
• And let's not forget renters - I have yet to hear of a landlord allowing a renter to install solar panels on the roof and have the hot water heater converted to an on-demand heater connected directly to the panels!

Now let's see what people find so attractive about clean energy:

• Reduction in air pollution
• A chance to reduce your carbon footprint
• No radioactive waste is produced, nor is the earth mined or drilled
  
• You are contributing to environmental awareness and doing your part to help the planet

To allow consumers the opportunity to purchase green power, the EPA has partnered with utility companies across the nation as part of the Green Power Partnership. Depending on your utility company, the alternative forms of enery will vary, from solar to wind to water and biomass (methane gas recapture).

How it works is pretty simple, with a small cost attached. Follow these steps:

1. Go to the Green Power Locator on the US EPA web site, click on your state and find your local utility company.
2. Call and tell your utility company you want to enroll in the clean energy program and tell them the percentage of green electricity you'd like to purchase - it can range from 25% - 100%.
3. Depending on the percentage of green power you elect, your per kWh will be increased. For example, with NSTAR in Massachusetts, if you elect 50% to be clean energy, you would pay an additional 0.837 cents per kWh. If you choose to have 100% clean energy, your rate would increase by 1.396 cents per kWh.
4. The alternative energy is then purchased directly by the utility company via the regional grid (in NSTAR's case, they purchase wind power from the Maple Ridge Wind Farm in upstate New York, which connects to the New England grid).

Why does it cost more? Because, at present, it still costs more per kWh for clean energy providers to produce the power. However, as the technology improves, more competitors enter the market, and more people demand cleaner energy alternatives, the prices will eventually come down.

So if you can't invest in alternative power sources right now, why not consider purchasing at least a portion of your electricty from cleaner sources? You'll feel SO good knowing you're doing something to help the planet!

Until next time, Peace!

-TMC

For some reason, I’ve been attracting a lot of buyers interested in finding a rehab property lately. Perhaps it’s because there are so many foreclosures on the market now, it’s the prevalent type of property to grab at a good price. I’m surprised, though, at the number of people who aren’t familiar with the 203(k) Rehabilitation Mortgage program, available through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

Here are just a few details on the program:

• 203(k) mortgages can be used for both single family purchases as well as condos. However, there are certain restrictions regarding the condo loans, including the requirement that it be owner-occupied or be a non-profit owner.
• The loans are available for buildings with up to 4 units.
• Mixed-use buildings are eligible, but the mortgage can only be used for rehab to the residential portion of the building.
• Can an investor get a 203(k) Mortgage? No.
• Can a first-time homebuyer get a 203(k) Mortgage? Absolutely!
• Can a 203(k) Mortgage be used to convert a single family or two-family into two or more units? Yes – but it can not exceed the maximum of 4 units.
• Is there a minimum loan amount? Yes – $5,000 is the minimum loan amount you can get.
• What is the time frame for construction requirements? Work must begin within 30 days of the signing of the Agreement and must not continue more than 6 months beyond the first date of construction.
  

These are just some of the highlights of the 203(k) Mortgage Rehab program. For more information, visit the HUD’s web site and their detailed Q & A section on the program. As always, my web site at CyberGreenRealty.com has more information on energy efficient improvements and other programs that may help qualify you for a higher mortgage.

Until next time, Peace!

-TMC

A passive solar home means there are no moving parts or equipment that need to be maintained. Being "passive" means just that - it's all about how your house "lays" there and absorbs or reflects heat.

Heat naturally moves from a warmer material to a cooler material until there is no temperature difference between the two materials. Passive solar homes take advantage of this property to distribute heat in the winter and to deflect heat away from surfaces in the summertime.

Direct heat gain is the simplest passive type of solar system, as it relies only on sun entering through a collector of some sort (such as a large south-facing window with a glazing material of transparent or translucent glass), and being absorbed by a darker material, such as a masonry floor. The floor acts as the "thermal mass" and absorbs the heat during the day. At night, as the floor cools, the heat is radiated back into the room as heat.

Some people use water-filled containers to absorb the heat, as water stores twice as much heat as masonry material. However, these types of systems need to be carefully designed and placed, as the structural support required is high.

In the summertime, if the home has been designed and oriented properly, with appropriate roof overhangs, awnings, or shutters, the sun does not enter through the windows and no heat is absorbed. Think of how the sun is aligned in the winter and summer and this will make sense. In the winter, the sun hits us from a much sharper southern angle. That allows more of the sun into our windows in the winter. In the summer, the sun is higher in the sky and shines down more directly. The sun can therefore be blocked with larger roof overhangs, window awnings, shutters, and even trellises with blooming vines.

An indirect heat gain system is more complex, as it involves installing the thermal storage medium (the thermal mass) in between the south-facing windows and the living areas. In this type of setup, a Trombe wall is installed which consists of an 8-16 inch-thick masonary wall on the south side of the house. A single or double layer of glass is mounted about 1 inch or less in front of the wall's surface. Solar heat is then absorbed by the wall's dark-colored surface and stored in the wall's thermal mass, where it begins to radiate into the house. Because the transfer of heat takes a lot longer, the heat doesn't begin to radiate into the living spaces until the sun has set. It typically will take about 8 hours for the heat to radiate into the home, so this system is very affective in winter-time heating. And as with the direct heat gain method, proper use of roof overhangs, shutters, and trellises will eliminate the summer-time heat gain.

For more information on designing a passive solar heat system for your home, see the Energy Savers web site, part of the U.S. Department of Energy's web site.

If you live in the Massachusetts area, be sure to check my web site at CyberGreenRealty.com for local solar vendors and others who can help you get as "active" or "passive" as you want!

Until next time. Peace!

-TMC