Oregon is #9 on the Solar List – For the # of Photovoltaic Systems Installed

Solar Energy in Oregon

Photovoltaic

– Photovoltaics (or PV) is the field of technology and research related to the application of solar cells for energy by converting solar energy (sunlight, including ultra violet radiation) directly into electricity.

Buying in bulk is good…at least solar consumers in Oregon think so.  They are buying together to increase their overall purchasing power.  Buying through organizations such as congregations or whole residential neighborhoods in quantities of 25+ at a time really shaves down the out of pocket investment and makes going green much more appetizing to many Oregon consumers.

Did you know that most of the mid to large size installations are merely hosting the systems through Purchase Power Agreements, resulting in virtually no out of pocket investment to the hosts, and reduced electricity costs (compared to local utility rates) as well?  The tax benefits would be to the owner – not the host – but overall, this is a good arrangement for everyone, especially the environment.

A 5% price drop in the last year or so makes these systems even more attractive for their owners.

The federal governement is now helping rural ranchers and farmers to take part in this solar technology by offering grant programs.  You can get more information on that here.

Combining Solar and Thermal energy is a great way to reduce waste and to really USE what we have.  Research is underway to determine the best ways to utilize the “waste” heat at the back of the PV system, possibly for space heating, hot water heat or other yet undetermined uses…the best thing about it is that they don’t want their to be wasted energy.

If you’re interested in utilizing Solar energy in your home and everyday life, please email me. I am an Energy Trust of Oregon Real Estate Professional trade ally. In addition, I am certified by Earth Advantage S.T.A.R. (Sustainability Training for Accredited Real Estate Professionals). I can suggest energy efficient improvements for new and existing homes and talk to you about cash-back incentives as well.

 

Late Summer in the Garden

New Dawn Roses & Scarlet Runner Blossoms

The green beans are making their way from their trellis to the arch with the climbing roses. New Dawn pinks are dancing with the red of Scarlet Runners. A ‘mess’ of beans was picked this morning and will be steamed by evening.

 

Six quarts of pasta sauce rest in the freezer thanks to the prolific output of heirloom tomatoes: red Legends, Nebraska Golds, and the gorgeous yellow of Taxi.

Yesterday's Harvest

When the Sun Gold cherries make it to the kitchen and don’t get eaten straight from the vine, their tang perfects the panzanella salad and the basil pesto for pasta. Almost too pretty to cook, purple eggplants have had their day on the grill, and the Baby Dumplings are waiting for another cool day and their roasting date with the oven.

 

Last of the Summer Roses

Overgrown and over blown, the roses are past their prime, need trimming, yet have buds waiting to bloom – a final push before their season truly ends. Poppies are faded and the phlox has fallen over on itself.

It’s as if the garden knows Labor Day is just a few, getting-shorter days from now.

 

Faded Poppies

 And of course, it does. We all know. Mother Nature has been sending signals to us for at least a week. She’s put that slightly bittersweet taste on our tongues, a damp and musty odor in our nostrils, the failing, softer, late light in our eyes.

It’s a vague voice being received by our semi-conscious minds. Gentle hints sotto voce; the whispers and murmurs in the air: “summer is almost gone.”

Summer Splash

Children shriek in the street, reluctant listeners to mothers calling. Back-to-school shoe shopping is an interruption and not on any 12 year old boy’s play list today. Adults notice in themselves the cloudy yearning that isn’t quite nostalgia, but a sense of things undone, or moments misplaced. For a few there is a sense of urgency.

Others touch the excitement of summer’s end, remembering the promise and unrevealed anticipation of the return to school. For them Labor Day announces what has always felt like the authentic New Year, the genuine new beginning and time for resolutions.

As with every year, Labor Day approaches with two-fold meaning.

 

Time’s Running Out – first time home buyer credit

Townhomes Portland OR

It’s August already, summer about gone and fall fast approaching.  Sure we’ll have some more hot August days, and a few in September but before long November 30th will be here, and then gone.  That’s important because the $8000 credit, the Feds are giving first time home buyers will be kaput on December 1st.

And since it’s taking longer to get all the paperwork, loans, appraisals and inspections completed to buy that house – as long as 60 days in some cases, more typically about 45 days – that really means first time buyers may not have much time  to act.

Count backwards from December 1 and see what happens.  If you allow 45 days AFTER you locate the house you want to purchase, that means you, the buyer, need to have an accepted offer no later than October 15th. 

The way time flies, that’s not much time to act.  If you are planning to take advantage of the first time buyer credit, and have questions about how it works and what it means, I encourage you to watch the video.

$8000 Tax Credit (Re/Max Agents Know)

Oh, one more thing – the rumors that the credit will be renewed? Or increase if renewed?  We don’t know. I encourage you to make your decisions based on today’s conditions and your individual situation.

 

The Place You Love Is Gone!

Was going through my old copies of Preservation, the magazine published by the National Historic Trust, today – I am trying like crazy to get through the stacks of magazines I’ve been waiting for a chance to read! and I came across the July/August 2008 issue. There is a review of the book referenced in the title above by Melissa Holbrook Pierson, which was written by Dwight Young, a Trust staff contributor.

Pierson describes ‘progess’ and what it means, about losing the scenes of childhood to a form of modernzation she describes as a pulverization into unrecognizability by examining three places she lived. Young, the reviewer says the book is not just an exercise of nostalgia but also a refreshing and right outrage.

Since I love seeing the places I’ve known in my past, and share with Young the sense of miracle that comes with finding a childhood haunt unaltered by time I find I want to document what still exists.

I’ll be taking more photographs on my journeys through time. I’ll write more about what I find, or don’t find.

I’ve just ordered the book from Amazon. I’ll let you know what I think.

 

I Spy … a game updated & We’re Looking For Joy!

Decorative Sun- freeclipartnow

Sunshine and shirtsleeves! Bikers and walkers in what seemed to be greater numbers than just yesterday. The mountains were out, in snowy splendor, shining bright. People sat at sidewalk cafes with their faces turned up, catching rays. My spirits were up, it was great to be out and about dropping off gifts for a couple of clients, feeling warm in the car without the heater running! I was feeling joy, and each block along the way increased the feeling.

It was an it’s-almost-spring kind of day – the kind of day that is sometimes called a ‘fooled ya day’ here in Portland. (In February we may not get two of these in a row.) At just under 60 degrees, it was a day for not only feeling joy, but also for spying joy!

Michele M Larsen, used with permission

Michele M. Larsen, the former publisher of the NW Women’s Journal, has created a web experience and site for just these moments. She created ISpyJoy, a website dedicated to spreading joy by sharing photos and experiences of happiness from all over the world.

In her own words, she shares her thoughts behind the creation of the site: “After I lost my dream business I discovered I let too much of myself go with it. Then I made a choice: I wanted to be happy. Like the good student I’ve always been, I thought I needed to study this crazy, elusive animal “happiness.” So after reading stacks of books I came to the conclusion that happiness doesn’t come from what we do or who we think we are, it comes from appreciating the moment and finding value in simply being alive right here, right now.”

Stories and photos are varied. You’ll find photos of kids in the snow, a post about reptiles and joy, a note from a mother whose daughter has discovered her cancer has metastasized and how the ispyjoy site helped her move from despair to hope. As of the end of December, ISpyJoy had joyful images from 7 countries, 6 US states and 35 cities and counting.

I Spy Joy logo - used with permission

There is lots of encouragement to post your own moments and photos of joy. Check out the site, take a minute for joy, start your own collection of moments and sights of joy.

I Spy Joy – it’s a choice.

 

Happy Birthday Oregon, 150 years & Everyone’s Invited!

1. 

   Balloon Hearts on Strings

Oregon was admitted to the union on Valentines Day, 1859

– shouldn’t that mean Oregon is for Lovers, not Virginia? After all we have 150 years of love, not just 40!

 

All kidding aside, February 14^th is the beginning of the Oregon Sesquicentennial Year. Special stuff is going on all year!   Over 500 statewide events featuring elk viewing, arts and crafts festivals, trail clean up, painting contests, win a trip contests (see next post), paddling the South Slough Estuary at the Oregon Coast and many more incredibly fun and exciting things to do.        

 All over the state, all year long in big towns, small towns, all along the coast: Portland, Albany, Eugene, Newport, Adtoria, Philomath, Dayton, St. Paul, Salem, Lafayette, La Pine, Sisters, Baker City, the list is long!

Many events are planned for the 14^th, the annual Charleston Crab Feed for example – but you’ll find enough going on to take you into spring, summer and fall by visiting the Oregon Sesquicentennial web site.

 

 

 

 

Speaking of love – I Love Oregon WInes – (who doesn’t?) is a Valentines Day and weekend event in wine country the weekend of the 14th  through the 16th. A number of tastings and culinary events (think fine chocolate and great Oregon cuisine) are planned. The weekend also kicks off 150 Days of WIne in the WIllamette Valley in honor of the 150th birthday.

Oregon's Birthday Bash Logo

 

Birthday Bash events in Salem, the capitol city, include  Family Day, the Sesquicentennial Soiree, or the Oregon Ball.

 

 Another way to kick start the next 150 years - and  benefit the Portland Art Museum at the same time is the Portland Art Museum’s Beaux Art Ball on February 21st. Themed after the famed Ecole des Beaux Arts Balls of 17th century Paris, you’ll find all details at their web site.

There’s lots more going on and lots more to let you know about.  It’s a great year to visit Oregon, it’s better than ever here! As always I’m avaliable to answer questions about Portland and the state that I love – real estate and more.  Let’s stay in touch!. 

 

 

 

 

The Garden is a Disaster: will it come back? a metaphor

Remnants: Artichoke Plant

It’s that time of the year.

  My garden is in horrible shape, seemingly fatally wounded by winter’s wrath.  While Portland gardens most always are fairly uninspiring and bleak in January, this year the garden seems to be in worse condition than usual.
The artichokes look dead.  Leaves of mush and slime, lying against dirt.  Over half of the strawberry plants are brown, brittle, broken.  And the swiss chard which has wintered successfully for two years – with a little protection on a few nights each year – has disappeared.  Melted I guess. December’s ice and snow have really taken a toll. 
Daisies, and phlox stems which were left in their beds for visual interest, now look stranger than fiction, primed to topple and stifle any nearby growth.

Garden in Disarray

January’s high winds have flattened the grasses, broken the thermometer and tossed a bird feeder to the squirrels.
 

The vine encrusted weather-vane frame is also a victim of the east winds. It now lies on the flagstones waiting for assistance: the roots not strong enough to withstand the gusts.   
Now it’s the first of February, and I wonder if the garden can be saved, will be as beautiful as in years past. I know it will come back.

Crocus Shoots

The signs of life and renewal are already there.  Green shoots of crocus, daffodils and tulips have poked through webbed, grey  leaf debris.  The irises are seven inches high. The dandelions, almost as great a harbinger of spring as the fat robin, are planning to erupt with bright yellow andy moment.  Newly folded, tender leaves lie against thorny rose canes, ready to pop at the first sunny, 55 degree day, and the rose buds won’t be far behind.
It’s time again for weeding, and cutting back, trimming and pruning.  Some of the plants won’t come back and will need to be re-seeded.  That’s true every year.  Maybe there will be a few more casualties this season – that will give me a chance to plant something new, try a different variety. The garden won’t be the same, with the same beauty as before, but it never is.  Each year the garden is a new garden.

Perhaps you’ve already seen it? The similarity this garden has to the business of real estate?  There’s been ice and snow in the industry: the media reports daily on the frozen banking and loan industry.  If you only listen to those reports, you miss the full picture, just as if you only see the damaged artichoke. Under the layers of media reporting, there is something else. Buyers ARE obtaining loans, making offers, receiving acceptances and moving into their new homes.  Sellers ARE pricing appropriately, putting their properties into tip-top condition, getting offers, and moving on with their lives.  

Last Year's Garden

The high winds of change, of correction have taken a toll.

In 2008 new homes sold at the slowest pace since 1982.

According to the National Association of Realtors, there are 10% fewer real estate agents than two years ago.   Short sales and foreclosures have become common words in our vocabularies.  This has been a hard winter for many; some roots were not strong enough.
Trimming and pruning are not just  spring tasks.  I’ve examined where and how I spend my media dollars, taken time in evaluating leads and client lists.  Assessed how motivated sellers are, reminded buyers that we’ll only know we’ve reached the bottom when we look back at it.  And meditated on which networking events will provide the best seeds for repopulating the pipeline.

As in the garden, I spend time noticing growth where I see it. Sales are up in some of the national markets that were hard hit, and nationally, December’s existing-home sales were up 6.5 % over November. Houses are affordable. Sellers are flexible. Loans are available. My January this year was stronger than January of 2008. Just as I see flowers in the earth, under fallen leaves and know they do come back; I see buyers and sellers, and under the uncertainty the pent-up demand I know is there. I see their hope, their desire.

 The market blooms each season, differently than last season’s. Each one is new, just as each year the garden is new. 

Anticipating

It’s still true, people need and want to move, to sell and buy homes, to create their own gardens.

 

 

 

photos by Alexsandra Stewart

 

Snow Days

 

Not enough words to describe the snow today. All the trite ones have been used – fluffy, drifting, winter wonderland, magical, and so on. The flakes were lazy, floaty, light appearing, but still heavier than air.

 

Snow Fall, Sellwood Middle School Fields

The snow fell.

The fallen snow was greater than a dusting, and while there were white-out conditions in the Gorge, I don’t think it could be classified as a blizzard – at least not by mid-west standards.

The trees are more than frosted, flocked. Walking leaves a crunch that lingers in hat covered ears. Chained tires roll past the walkers with off-key notes of worry. Sidewalks have disappeared and skis and sleds have claimed the side streets.

There are drawbacks, there always are when Lady Nature throws a loop at us. Planned life was interrupted, days and nights disrupted. People who were traveling for the holidays are now sleeping in the airport. Roads and ramps closed, parties cancelled, and the Christmas Ships won’t parade the Willamette on their last two nights to shine.

Freezing rain is next on the weather agenda. Portland will stay shut down a short while longer.

photo by Alex Stewart

 

Helping Your Neighbors, Helping the Oregon Food Bank

It’s been a hard year for many people, and this is a season where families and individuals often feel even more of a pinch.  .

Shelves of Canned Goods

Unemployment is up, savings are down and personnel at the Food Bank have said that the demand for emergency food is greater than ever. On the  Oregon Food Bank web site the OFB reports that the Network’s first-quarter reports (July 1-Sept. 30, 2008), distribution of emergency food boxes increased 13 percent in Oregon and 8 percent in Clark County, WA, compared to the same period in 2007.

46% of households receiving emergency food have at least one working member.

   Let’s see how much we can help.

The Oregon Food Bank has placed a contribution barrel in the RE/MAX equity group office at 7886 SE 13th Ave in the Sellwood-Moreland neighborhood -- the library building.

Oregon Food Bank Needs These Nutritious Foods:

* canned meats (i.e., tuna, chicken, salmon)

*  canned and boxed meals (i.e., soup, chili, stew, macaroni and cheese)

* peanut butter

*  canned or dried beans and peas (i.e., black, pinto, lentils)

*  pasta, rice, cereal

*  canned fruits

*  100 percent fruit juice (canned, plastic or boxed).

The barrel will be at RE/MAX  until the 24th.  Hope you’ll come by and drop off some needed food and add support for someone in need. 

Please share – because no one should be hungry.

 

Make an Ornament, Have Some Fun and Support a Great Organization!

Prefontaine Studio

Fused Glass Art Sale

&

Ornament Extravaganza to Benefit

Sisters of the Road

Saturday and Sunday

December 6 & 7 2008

10:00 am to 4:30 pm

6410 SE Ash Street

(One block South of Burnside on SE 65th)

503-260-6900

Prefontaine Studio invites you to celebrate their Holiday Fused Glass Art sale.  There are holiday designs as well as creative art for your home to enjoy year-round.  Studio glass bowls, platters, plate, vases, artwork and more.

Glass art is the perfect gift if you’re looking for something different from “The Mall” and pricing for everyone’s pocket book.

For those looking to give a gift from the heart this is your chance! Make your own fused glass holiday ornaments.  Just $10 each, two for $17 and 3 for $25.  It’s a lot of fun and everyone has the skills needed to participate.

 

For each ornament you create Prefontaine Studio will contribute $2 to Sisters of the Road.  This is especially great timing since there are matching grants that could double the $$ for SOTRC.

 

 We’ll be with you in the studio to assist you through fused glass.  Ornaments will be fired during the following week for pick-up on Saturday the 13th of December, from 10:00am to 1:30pm.

 

 Gift certificates are available to gift the experience of a half-day glass fusing workshop where certificate holders may create a 9″ bowl.  Workshops will be held on three dates during the winter months of January, February and March. More gift certificate details available at Prefontaine Studio

 

Please, no children under 14 in the studio and please wear closed toe shoes and long pants if you’re going to make ornaments.

 

Bring a friend, share the news and spread the word… Santa’s on his way and Prefontaine Studio is the place to be on December 6th & 7th!

 

 

 

Flame Vase Red and Yellow from Prefontaine Studio