“Greening” Your Home as a Cost Savvy Senior
After all the Earth Day celebrations and the media hoopla surrounding the events in April, maybe you feel guilty about even stepping out of bed each day and turning on a light. Or you’re simply overwhelmed by the information and think the steps to a better environment (also called greening) are too complex or expensive.
But you needn’t diminish your lifestyle or make radical changes to live a greener life. In fact, you can implement small solutions to save you energy and as a cost conscious Senior, hold onto more of your money, all while doing a good turn for the environment.
Here are some strategies:
Federal Tax Incentives: The Energy Policy Act of 2005 (EPACT) allows you to get a tax credit of up to $500 for buying and installing products, such as energy-efficient windows and doors, insulation, roofs, and heating/cooling equipment. The changes must be made to your principal residence, and the tax credits apply to improvements made between January 1, 2006 and December 31, 2007. For more information, visit http://www.energy.gov/taxbreaks.htm
Lighting:
-Turn off unneeded lights.
-Consider swapping traditional light bulbs for compact fluorescents (CFLs). Though the initial cost of CFLs is higher, they last much longer than incandescent bulbs and use less energy, so you’ll save money over the life of the bulb. As an example, by replacing just one incandescent light bulb with a CFL, you could save $88.90 over the life of that bulb.You can calculate the savings you’d realize by using CFLs at http://www.onebillionbulbs.com/PromoteEnergySavingsCalculator.aspx?frame=Detail -Rather than lighting an entire room, consider task lighting. That is, use just a lamp for reading or
operate only the under-cabinet lighting when working in the kitchen.
-Use timers to automatically turn lights on and off
at a set time. It’s a good way to boost home security without leaving lights on all night. The same approach can be used for outdoor security lights.
-Install motion sensors outside so that security lights turn on when movement—someone walking up to the door, for example—is sensed, versus keeping a bulb burning all night.
Water:
-Take shorter showers
-Install low-flow showerheads to reduce hot water usage. Two-and-a-half-gallon-per-minute showerheads, costing about $10 to $20, can reduce water consumption by one-third to
one-half.
-Lower the thermostat setting on your water heater. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, each 10° reduction in water temperature can reduce energy costs by 3% to 5%.
Appliances: Home appliances can be energy hogs, so when it’s time to replace appliances, consider purchasing those with the ENERGY STAR® label. Below are some energy reduction ideas you can use everyday:
-Preheat ovens only when it’s absolutely necessary.
-Don’t open the oven frequently to check on food. Opening the door causes the temperature to drop each time and requires extra energy.
-Plan ahead and make multiple meals at once
-Reheat food in the microwave or toaster oven, rather than using the oven.
-Use the proper size burner for the task. It’s wasteful, for example, to simmer a small pan on a giant flame.
-Do only full loads and use cold water for clothes washer.
-Wash only full loads in the dishwasher. Cut energy consumption by letting the dishes air dry, versus using the heat-dry setting.
- Automatic ice-makers and through-the-door
dispensers increase energy use by 14% to 20%,
according to Flex Your Power.
-Clean refrigerator coils to improve operational efficiency.
-A full refrigerator retains cold better than an empty one.
-Keep the refrigerator’s temperature between 35° and 38° and freezers at 0 degrees Fahrenheit.
Heating and cooling:
-Install a programmable thermostat that automatically keeps the heat lower when you’re out or asleep.
-Raise the temperature in the summer and lower it in the winter.
-Keep your filters clean. Dirty filters can restrict airflow and can cause your HVAC system to run longer than required to heat and cool your home.
-Don’t let cooled or heated air seep out. Use weather-stripping and caulking to seal doors and windows, especially important in the hot summer months ahead.
There’s an abundance of information online about saving energy and improving the environment. Here are some useful sites:
Green cleaning—
ways to save money and reduce the chemicals in your house by making your own cleaning products
with commonly found products, like baking soda.
Database of State Incentives for Renewables & Efficiency (http://www.dsireusa.org/)--You can find state, local, utility, and federal incentives for renewable energy and energy efficiency.
Flex Your Power--(http://www.fypower.org/) Universally applicable ideas from California's statewide energy efficiency marketing and outreach campaign site offer an array of no- and low-cost energy saving tips as well as product information and guidance on financial incentives for greening your environment. If you’re on a fixed income, see “Save on a Tight Budget.”
Energy Star—(http://www.energystar.gov/) It is a joint program of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Energy that aims to save dollars and the environment through energy efficient products and practices.
The Home Energy Saver--(http://hes.lbl.gov/)--You can type in your zip code, some facts about your home (size, number of windows, and so forth) and energy use, and the calculator will show the changes you can make to reduce energy consumption and save money. More Senior News:
MORTGAGE FRAUD IS EQUIVALENT TO PAPER TERRORISM
Con artists who perpetrate mortgage fraud against Seniors aim to steal people’s home equity or even snatch a house away. Frequently it’s done by convincing victims to sign over ownership via phony home loans.
Paper terrorism is one way Bill Denny describes mortgage fraud. Denny, Senior Deputy District Attorney for Alameda County, California, specializes in prosecuting perpetrators of mortgage fraud. “I’ve debriefed major mortgage fraud cons and it’s like debriefing an expert burglar,” he says. Seniors are particularly vulnerable to such scams because many are equity rich and cash poor and they still like to do business on a handshake.
Some con artists are brazen and forge signatures and march into the recorder’s office and transfer properties into their own names. Before they’re caught, they’ve often taken loans out against a property and stripped it of equity.
Cons also work at building trust and ingratiating themselves to perpetrate their scams. You can protect yourself by being aware of some of the scams.
Cash offers--Cons might say, “Let me save you the hassle of putting your home on the market and having strangers traipsing through your home. I'll give you this amount in cash and you can move next week." Bad guys don’t offer the current value, so stay up on home values in your neighborhood.
Junk fees--One scam involves charging excessive fees for duplication, document preparation, and so forth. Denny says one red flag that you’re possibly being gouged is if your closing costs exceed five percent of the total amount of the loan.
Falsifying income--Unscrupulous loan brokers falsify Seniors’ income so they qualify for large
loans. Brokers benefit by receiving fat commission checks. Bilked Seniors are stuck with a mortgage payment they often can’t meet. Denny tells of an 85-year-old woman whose mortgage broker indicated that she was an interior decorator with an
$8,500 monthly income. It turns out that the woman was blind--clearly incapable of decorating homes. “These scams are rampant,” comments Denny.
Work only with licensed brokers. “Just as you don’t let unlicensed contractors do home improvements, you also don’t want unlicensed loan brokers doing paper terrorism on your property.” Check licenses with state, county, or city regulatory agencies.
Telephone solicitations—Cons work the phones and target zip codes where there’s a concentration of empty-nesters, who have paid off home loans or are close to owning their homes free and clear. Hang up if cons try to convince you that your home is a cash cow and want to help you squeeze money out of it.
Blank documents--When you sign a blank or partially blank page, con artists can later insert information above your signature that transfers a property or loan proceeds to them. Don’t sign blank documents or documents containing blank spaces.
Foreclosure threats--If you get behind in mortgage payments, a notice of default--the first step in a foreclosure proceeding--is published in many jurisdictions. Scam artists then swoop in and scare people, telling them their houses will be taken away. They then offer assistance and claim they can save the property.
Some bilk victims by charging money to do virtually nothing. Others get victims to sign their house over to them and suggest the victim rent the house from the “rescuer” while the victim rebuilds his or her credit. Rescuers claim victims can later buy the house back when they’re back on their feet.
When a home isn’t paid off or if you’re in default, keep an eye out for people offering a seemingly good price for the property, someone claiming your equity is less than what you actually have, or promising to make your loan current to save your credit.
“The biggest trend is elder homeowners who believe they’re doing a new loan when they’re actually transferring ownership,” comments Denny. Watch out for religious organizations too. Some people claim to be ministers and prey on the elderly, purporting to have their best interests at heart.
Protect Yourself against Mortgage Fraud
• Outrageous promises of extraordinary profit in a short period of time signals a problem.
• Be wary of high-pressure sales techniques.
• Understand what you’re signing. If you don’t understand the documents, get help from an attorney.
• Make sure the name on your application matches the name on your identification.
• Understand the mortgage terms. Check your information against the information in the loan documents to ensure they’re accurate and complete.
• Be leery of e-mails or Web ads promoting elimination of mortgage loans, credit card and other debts while requesting an up-front fee to prepare documents. Documents are typically entitled Declaration of Voidance, Bond for Discharge of Debt, Bill of Exchange, Due Bill, Redemption Certificate, or other similar variations.
Source: U. S. Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Investigation
For the National Consumer Law Center’s 68 page report, Dreams Foreclosed: The Rampant Theft of Americans’ Homes through Equity Stripping Foreclosure Rescue Scams. visit www.consumerlaw.org/news/ForeclosureReportFinal.pdf
Report Fraud:
If you think you’re a victim of mortgage fraud, contact your state Attorney General’s office. You can also contact your state’s real estate licensing board or appraisal licensing board. At the federal level, you can contact the National FBI Financial Institution Fraud Unit (http://www.fbi.gov/) at 202/324-3000.