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Green Building Bible, Fourth Edition
Green Building Bible, fourth edition (both books)
These two books are the perfect starting place to help you get to grips with one of the most vitally important aspects of our society - our homes and living environment.

PLEASE NOTE: A download link for Volume 1 will be sent to you by email and Volume 2 will be sent to you by post as a book.

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    • CommentAuthorDantenz
    • CommentTimeSep 25th 2010
     
    Just had the house valued by the leading estate agent in the area. A valuation was tendered and out of interest I asked if the air/water heat pump + solar HW heating + oil condensing boiler influenced the valuation. Much to my amazement the agent said it made little or no difference to the value of the property. Surely if this is so then the EPC isn't worth the paper it's written on not to mention any dillusion of increasing the value of or making the property more saleable. Is this how you see it?
    •  
      CommentAuthorDamonHD
    • CommentTimeSep 25th 2010
     
    EPC is worth it if I won't buy your house at all at a below-C rating.

    Nationwide claims ~10% uplift in value from renewables.

    Likelihood of random SUV/4x4-driving estate agent knowing what they are talking about on this point is minimal IMHO. A *good* agent would up-sell based on your measures, especially to clients who give a sh*t.

    On the previous house I had a spread of valuations of ~15%, all from well-known agents in good standing.

    Rgds

    Damon
    • CommentAuthorjamesingram
    • CommentTimeSep 28th 2010 edited
     
    Currently I've got doubts as to the perceived value of energy efficiency improvement or onsite microgen. in regard to property price increase.
    Most people I know dont give a hoot for such things.
    Most buyers will be looking for the lowest price they can get for a particular property type , in a particular location
    All 'green' improvement may do is make the property have the edge for a quicker sale when placed up against something similar.
    Some buyers may even be scared off by mircogen. seeing it as a future risk or hassle they could do without.

    As/if energy prices increase and such things become more common I'd hope this to change.
    • CommentAuthorJTGreen
    • CommentTimeSep 28th 2010
     
    Current high levels of mobility, rootlessness, and hunger for ever more and better of everything (including houses and location) belongs to a world of cheap energy and high GHG emissions. Housing market? Why worry about something you can't control? You might as well love where you live and plan to stay there. Think in terms of amenity value to you, rather than speculating on housing futures.
    •  
      CommentAuthorDamonHD
    • CommentTimeSep 28th 2010
     
    JTGreen, are you sure that you're not my long-lost 'good' twin?

    Rgds

    Damon
  1.  
    Last agent I spoke to said 'green' = increased sale-ability but not increased price for 'average' punter but felt that as more high performance properties came on to the market and the 'uninitiated' actually started to experience the benefits (financially and otherwise) then the market would start to recognise the benefits via price.

    J
    •  
      CommentAuthorfostertom
    • CommentTimeSep 28th 2010
     
    Not so much 'starting to experience the benefits', as 'starting to really feel the pain' when fuel price rises get back onto the 2003-on curve (after this summer of stasis) and stay there for a while. Till then, broad public awareness won't shift.
    • CommentAuthoradwindrum
    • CommentTimeSep 28th 2010
     
    My guess is that it adds value to those looking for renewables, but possible devalues it for those not looking for them. We all know fuel prices are going up but sales of gas guzzling cars arent dropping. A few hundred pounds extra a year on energy costs to run a house wont compute with most people. They would rather have a gas combi that does what it says on the tin, and not a collection of expensive renewables that they dont understand, possibly involve complex paperwork with grant schemes to tie them up etc etc.

    Just as a remote location doesnt always add value, if someone wants it they will pay extra for it, I suggest add your own value to it and sit and wait.
    •  
      CommentAuthorfostertom
    • CommentTimeSep 28th 2010
     
    Posted By: adwindrumWe all know fuel prices are going up
    Trouble is, they haven't, all summer - the inevitable has been staved off somehow so it's been off everyone's radar for a few easy-livin' months, within this crucial paradigm-shift moment in history. But this short stasis is only a blip in the steady 31%pa rise that's been going on 2003-7 and resumed 2009.
    •  
      CommentAuthorSteamyTea
    • CommentTimeSep 28th 2010 edited
     
    EDF just said they are putting prices up 2.6%.
    Not sure how you work out a 31%pa increase from the 2003-7 data from the DECC data.

    http://www.decc.gov.uk/en/content/cms/statistics/source/prices/prices.aspx
    •  
      CommentAuthorfostertom
    • CommentTimeSep 28th 2010 edited
     
    Blimey that's a rich (daunting) source.
    I'm referring to http://www.tradingeconomics.com/World-Economy/Commodities.aspx e.g. http://www.tradingeconomics.com/Economics/Commodities.aspx?symbol=HO1
    http://www.wtrg.com/oil_graphs/oilprice1947.gif is nice too, also http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/87/Oil_Prices_1861_2007.svg/2000px-Oil_Prices_1861_2007.svg.png
    $20/barrel (at 2008 value) for 100yrs to 1973, then $30 thro the Thatcher/N Sea/Reagan/Alaska terminal orgy 1986-2003, then rising 31%pa ever since except 2007-09 nett stasis, now resumed.
    •  
      CommentAuthorfostertom
    • CommentTimeSep 28th 2010
     
    Just came across this from http://www.bne.uwe.ac.uk/cssb/brundtland.asp mentioned in http://www.aecb.net/forum/index.php/topic,2681.0.html :

    "In Western Europe, sustainable development first became a matter of public policy during the 5th century BC. Archaeological evidence shows that Greek settlements of the period, such as those at Delos and Olynthus, were carefully oriented to allow each citizen equal access to the winter sun. The ancient Greeks adopted solar planning because they were keen to reduce their dependence on imported firewood for heating. This was documented by, amongst others, the author Xenophon (431-355 BC) who quotes Socrates on some of the principles involved:

    'in south-facing houses, the sun enters through the portico in winter while in summer the path of the sun, as we have described, rises overhead and over the roof, thus there is shade', VIII ff.

    He also mentions the importance of closing the house to the north as a barrier against cold winds. The ancient Greeks were unusual in planning for sustainability: concerted efforts to reduce energy consumption in buildings did not begin in earnest in Britain until 1970s. This followed dramatic oil price rises, and concerns about the security of energy supplies. But as fuel prices dropped in the mid-1980s, so did much of the drive to produce low-energy buildings. Now, twenty years later, the decline of North Sea oil and gas reserves means that the UK will soon become heavily dependent on imported energy. This is at a time when global demand for energy is increasing and prices are rising."
    •  
      CommentAuthorSteamyTea
    • CommentTimeSep 28th 2010
     
    The unexpected rise we had 3 years ago was caused by refining capacity and speculation. This price hike, though real in cash terms, cannot be used as a long term indicator for price rises.
    The economics of some resources are not the same as other. If the global price of oil falls then the producing companies just stop pumping it, or throttle the supply. This leads to the odd situation where we get our Prime Minister pleading with the OPEC countries to increase supply, which they did to the extent that it could not be refined (world refining capacity has hardly changed in the last 20 years) and transported. The speculators then stepped in and bought oil for future delivery. They did this so effectively that storage became a problem and the price slumped. This can be seen on the chart as that spike between Feb 2007 and Feb 2009. The steady rise since is probably caused by under refining capacity and not overall resources. Bit like our need for housing is high but no one is buying so we do not build any, keeping the price high in the hope that someone will buy in the future.
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