Home Contractor vs. Homeowner

An important post on preventing fire in your home: http://www.managemyhome.com/mmh/authored/articles/Preventing+Fire+in+Your+Home?sid=twitter This article provides a great public service.

http://realestate.msn.com/article.aspx?cp-documentid=13108041 This is a great article for contractors and homeowners alike.

Why can't Massachusetts do this? http://online.wsj.com/article/SB125064722656442071.html I know a contractor who has started a business doing energy audits and I am going to ask him to guest blog. Now we just need local loan programs to defray the costs of doing energy-saving retrofits. At the end of the day, the homeowner is saving money by improving the environment, the contractors are getting much-needed work, and everybody benefits.

I really like this post about the latest options in green products, because it points out that one should educate oneself before "jumping on the bandwagon" when choosing green materials. http://earth2tech.com/2009/08/13/top-5-misconceptions-about-home-energy-performance/#more-38989

Part of dealing with the difficult economy is considering whether it is time to focus on new areas of practice or developments in construction. This article by Leah Thayer suggests that retrofitting houses with energy efficient improvements can benefit both contractors and homeowners alike. In fact, I recently met a contractor who had started a new business doing energy audits and making recommendations. I have said frequently that one way to deal with the recession is to take the time to learn a new skill or work on a new area for your business. Energy saving measures seem full of opportunity. There are many rebates available for homeowners to implement them, so this can be a win-win for homeowner and contractor alike. http://www.remodeling.hw.net/blogs/postdetails.aspx?BlogId=lthayer_blog&PostId=88266