Blog & News

July 31, 2012

Staying cool this summer doesn’t necessarily mean you have to pay a fortune to keep the air-conditioning running day and night. Here are tips—most costing less than $25—that will keep you comfortable and cut the typical $1,000 cooling bill by as much as half. What’s needed to get the temperature to drop? Only a little…

July 29, 2012

My wife and I thought about moving out of the city to cut our expenses. Then we ran the numbers and realized it made no sense. If you want to save money these days, you have to move into the city. Crazy, but true. No wonder McKinsey & Co., the strategy consultant, recently produced a…

July 24, 2012

It has been a controversial question in the home real estate market for years. Do houses with lots of energy-saving and sustainability features sell for more than houses without them? If so, by how much? Some studies have shown that consumers’ willingness to pay more for Energy Star and other green-rated homes tends to diminish…

July 9, 2012

Lake Oswego is one of Family Circle’s 10 Best Towns for Families. The communities featured in the magazine’s annual roundup of perfect places to call home combine affordable housing, good neighbors, green spaces, strong public school systems and giving spirits. The results of the comprehensive survey appear in Family Circle’s August 2012 issue. This year’s…

July 6, 2012

Taking steps to reduce your electricity and energy use at home is a smart choice — and the good news is you won’t have to replace all your windows or move to a yurt do it. Here are a few quick and easy projects to get you started. 1. Insulate electrical outlets. Insulate the electrical…

July 2, 2012

Real estate markets across the country are inching their way to a slow recovery after bottoming out, according to several real estate economists who spoke at a forum hosted by the National Association of Real Estate Editors. National Association of REALTORS®’ Chief Economist Lawrence Yun, Zillow Chief Economist Stan Humphries, and National Association of Home…

June 28, 2012

Buyers spend a lot of time looking at properties online, touring homes on the Sunday open house circuit and talking to their real estate agent. They’re laser-focused on finding the best home that meets their needs. The problem is, buyers sometimes don’t take the long view of a property. They’re only looking at a home…

June 4, 2012

The green home is about to be upon us, in a big – or at least bigger – way. It may amount to one-third of the entire market by 2016, according to industry publisher McGraw-Hill Construction. Harvey Bernstein, the company’s vice president for industry insights and alliances and a civil engineer, explained how green has…

May 29, 2012

Good news keeps rolling in on housing. Caveat: Improvement is relative. Prices still are stuck in the basement. Millions more foreclosures will hit the market in coming years. But with feet firmly on the ground, there’s no reason not to enjoy the spate of recent reports showing housing finally moving off the critical care list….