Aug 17, 2008 7:07 pm US/Eastern
Green Building May Put Dent In Foreclosures
BALTIMORE (WJZ) ―
Thanks to increased popular demand and recent green building legislation, the nationwide green building industry is very lively this summer.
Tim Williams reports it may put a small dent in the country's foreclosure market.
You expect to see more green in the city during the summer, but the kind that's popping up around Baltimore is being developed, not grown.
"You go to the Giant, the Super Fresh; you go to the 7-11, and you'll find something that is natural or organic. The same is happening with green building materials," said Brad Rogers, Baltimore Green Construction.
Developers are seeing a rise locally in home owners using environmentally friendly or green products.
Items such as cork flooring, glass blocks and bamboo table tops are becoming more available and affordable.
Brad Rogers owns Baltimore Green Construction. He says environmental awareness is having positive effects on the housing market.
"The better your home performs, the less you're spending on energy and the more you can devote to your mortgage. Which means you are less in jeopardy of losing your house," said Rogers.
Baltimore City is now developing its first totally green community.
In a year when state legislators are enacting new laws to slow foreclosures nationwide, they remain on the rise.
Yet the all-green experimental Clipper Mill section of the city is selling out fast largely due to its green appeal.
Developers specializing in the environmental movement say not it's not always expensive to make the transition. They say for every conventional way there is to build, there is a green way.
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