How Green Is My Realtor?

I was very excited to see the article in the Wall Street Journal titled, 'How Green is My Realtor'. So were a lot of other people I know, seeing that 4 people e-mailed it to me and 3 copies were placed on my desk at Village Properties. I am so proud that the EcoBroker® program is getting press and more and more agents are signing up for it across the country.As a member of many green organizations here in Santa Barbara, (Green Building Alliance, USGBC C4 Chapter member, Architecture 2030 Challenge board member, Built Green at the Santa Barbara Contractor's Association, The Plan Santa Barbara group, co-founder of SB's Green Drinks and helper of the Sustainability Projects yearly adult ed courses) plus the first EcoBroker® in Santa Barbara, I feel that I am pretty green but like everyone else I can be a lot greener! I have several green built and or LEED certified listings hitting the market in the next few months...please stay tuned for details! It is great to see more and more people embracing this way of living. Of course in the current market, or at any time for that matter it is important to stand out. Having my EcoBroker® certification has really helped with that as has the fact that I obtained it well over a year ago and that I believe in and love what I choose to do for a living. Personally I am in the beginning stages of research for a remodel of a house here in Santa Barbara. I purchased 'Green Remodeling For Dummies' book written by Eric Corey Freed and have been learning more about the differences in insulation, water heaters and choices in paint, appliances and construction waste solutions. I highly recommend this book... Thank you for sending me this article and I look forward to seeing more front page coverage about this very important topic. Hopefully the phrase "green built" will be unnecessary one day in the not too distant future and all building will be done with sustainability in mind. To read the whole article, click here.

Dear Green Home Owner

My name is Elizabeth Wagner and I want to congratulate you on your decision to build or remodel in a green way. Thank you for taking the initiative and doing the research to make a difference in our community. I attended the Green Homes Tour last year and was thrilled to see so many people exploring the selection of homes that the owners generously opened up to the public.

As a Santa Barbara local who grew up on a ranch on Refugio Mountain, I have always been interested in environmentally friendly building practices. Our ranch has its own well, a wildflower planted sod roof, Chinese chain rain collectors, recycled redwood decks, a wind generator and solar panels and many other green practices. This way of life interests me so much that I have incorporated it into my business practice as well as my day-to-day living.

Professionally, I am a Realtor with Village Properties and I am proud to work for a locally owned company that contributes so much to our community. I am Santa Barbara’s first EcoBroker®, which is a nationally recognized designation in the real estate industry. This way of thinking and doing business demonstrates my lifelong commitment to the environment and to my clients by further educating myself about green practices and ideas. Santa Barbara continues to be a front-runner of various green movements that community members initiated and took a pro-environmental stand years ago. As a child of the baby boomer generation, many of whom are becoming first time buyers, I do my best to educate and influence buyers and sellers in their green home choices and projects.

There is very little new building in Santa Barbara and most of my clients purchase a house that fits most (or some) of their needs and then remodel. Many homeowners, especially first time buyers or first time green remodelers have questions about how to redo aspects of their existing home and I have noticed throughout my career that the first people that they call are their friends for referrals and/or their Realtor for the inside track on what others have done and whether or not they were pleased with the work.

Please take a look at my website: www.SantaBarbaraEcoBroker.com to learn more the green real estate niche that I am developing. I am currently revamping my site to incorporate more about being an Eco Broker and the benefits of green. I appreciate your giving me the opportunity to prove that I love what I do, have a solid work ethic and am highly professional. Please let me know if you have any questions. I look forward to helping you with all of your future real estate needs.