Agent Profile
Real estate keeps me busy but I still find time to study and share my passion for history and preserving our beautiful Oregon natural surroundings by living smaller, smarter, and greener. Agency Info
Meadows Group Inc., Realtors
1902 SE Morrison St.
Portland, OR 97214
Small Homes
Naturally Green and Energy-Efficient Homes
Since man first moved from the shelter of caves, there’s been a struggle to find the best ways to protect us from the changes in our environment. Now we’re finding that how we build and live in our homes is adversely affecting that environment. Many of us are searching for better ways to live without too great of an impact. Especially today, there’s tremendous interest in buying smaller. You might be a young couple just starting out, or you could be an empty-nester wanting to downsize from the home where your family was raised. There are all kinds of people that choose to make their lifestyle simpler and less costly by having a small, efficient home…. including me.
There’s a growing trend in housing to make our footprint on this earth smaller. According to Walt Quade of Small Home Oregon, “(We are) the most consumptively housed people in the history of humanity. A little 1,000 square foot clapboard or brick bungalow in the older neighborhood near downtown uses less energy than the new 2,400 sq.ft. “green, energy-efficient” house on the edge of town.”
Wow, think about that! The average home built today in the US is about 2400 sq ft, so you can see why we may need to think about whether we’re really improving our environment with large “green” homes or McMansions.
With the growth in popularity of the “inner city Portland” neighborhoods in recent decades, many owners of existing small homes are reaping the benefits in lower energy bills and lower costs of maintenance and structural repairs. Not to mention the potential savings in commuting, the availability of public transportation, and all the services that can be found nearby, often in walking or biking distance. These all come together to meet the need of people wanting a simpler, more efficient lifestyle.
You can even find small homes in the suburbs, although our housing costs don’t always encourage builders to build small homes, they are definitely built on smaller lots. In 1973 Oregon’s forward-thinking Governor Tom McCall realized that they could reduce our footprint and make room for more people who want to enjoy suburban living, while preserving our surrounding natural habitats and farmland. This progressive move spawned the famed “urban growth boundary”. Although we have to live on smaller lots to provide more density within its circle, its prevented the urban sprawl that plagues other major metropolitan areas. Oregon’s land use planning, the first in the nation, is world-renowned and has been studied by other states and countries for many years.
As we learn more about the benefits of small homes, planners are finding ways for builder and developers to build more homes and communities that make sense. Portland’s future “eco-districts” are currently planned to start development in 2012. Future posts will explore who is successfully creating small, green, energy-efficient homes like the eco-districts or the adorable new cottage pictured above (by JW McGhee Construction), and where you’ll find them.
You’ll discover there’s a small home to fit just about every buyer’s desire, whether it’s the funky style of a 1920’s bungalow in Hawthorne, the modern lines of a post-war 50’s ranch in Concordia, or a new “eco-home” perfect for your retirement lifestyle.
How do people live smaller? How do you design storage and furnishings? Who has cool ideas about living and becoming part of the small home movement taking place across the country and around the world? Are you living small? Share your stories here too…let’s find out what is working so we can make our little corner of the world a greener, more energy-efficient, less-consumptive place to call our home.
Recent Blog PostsWhat is an “Eco-District”?
Sunday, November 8th, 2009
Portland planning thinks beyond new green homes and buildings to the greening of existing neighborhoods According to th Ambitious Green Goals for Portland
Sunday, November 1st, 2009
Climate Action Plan calls for changes by 2050 The Portland City Council and the Multnomah County Commissioners voted la Look Who’s Seeing Green in Portland
Monday, October 26th, 2009
Portland listed on many Top Green City lists We like to think of our city as the greenest place around. We do have man EPA Stats Show How Homes Impact Our Environment
Sunday, October 18th, 2009
Here's some basic but vitally important facts about building and living in our homes in the US: land use, energy consump Human Destruction of Forest Homes
Sunday, October 18th, 2009
For our own selfish needs and desires, we destroy what it took thousands of years to create, in a matter of months and y
Powered by: