Stacy Torrey shares some great ideas for your home that will not only make it more energy-efficient, but also more attractive to you and potential homebuyers.

“Paying for energy is an expensive part of home ownership, and you never know when prices will shoot up. Preparing for that and making changes now will pay off in a big way, easing the burden of your energy bills.

Use microwave cooking, rather than your oven or stove in hot months, as it is more energy efficient and won’t heat up your home. Run the dishwasher and clothes washer/dryer at night or overnight so you are not paying more for this energy during daytime peak hours. You can check with your electrical company to find the times when the rates are the lowest.”

Make sure to check out all of Stacy Torrey’s great energy-saving tips.

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We recently bought a 1970s home that did not include overhead lighting in any of the bedrooms (there is one small/ugly fixture beside each door). Instead of putting a fixture in the middle of each room, we are considering using light tubes as a more eco-friendly option. How will this impact our appraisal and resale value in the future? We’re not planning to sell anytime soon, but this is a pretty permanent change since it will involve a hole in the roof. What is your professional opinion?

-Gina

A bedroom is a personal space, and as such, I think a light tube is too impersonal and utilitarian. Plus, you don’t see light tubes in many places besides utility rooms, bonus rooms near the roof line, garages where there is no bonus room over the garage, etc. They are usually in places where you aren’t spending a lot of time.

Also, light tubes don’t give you the control you have with a regular light. You either have little or no light because it’s night time, or it’s a cloudy day, or you may have a lot of light streaming in that you can’t easily control. Perhaps there are controls I haven’t personally seen, so I can’t say with absolute authority that you can’t control the light coming into a room from a light tube – but I have not seen such controls before.

You can go to any number of places like Home Depot and Lowes Home Improvement and find many track and other kinds of decorative light fixtures for your bedrooms. I bet that for what you will save in cost versus the cost of a light tube, you should more than offset the extra electrical costs for a number of years by going with something more stylish, less obtrusive and more controllable.

Again, the location determines the need and the need, to a large extent, should determine your ultimate choice. I just don’t feel a light tube belongs in a bedroom. In a basement (assuming you have easy access to your roof) then yes.

In the end, I personally think adding light tubes to your bedrooms will hurt the value of your home because people are not going appreciate their appearance versus your other standard lighting options.

Tim McBrayer is a licensed Realtor in the Triangle specializing in North Raleigh, North Carolina Real Estate. He is an Eco Broker and serves on the Green Builders of the Triangle education committee.

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We are looking at a new grouping of patio type homes that are built directly next to a cemetery. The homes are built facing a center grassy courtyard and are very close together with an HOA that takes care of landscaping. Will either of these factors (patio home, next to cemetery) adversely affect resale value? -Jerrine

When purchasing any home (single family, patio home or condominium), the surrounding areas must be considered by the buyer in evaluating not only the price but the future anticipated appreciation in value. In this case, it is likely that the price being paid now is less than a comparable home without the close proximity to the cemetery, therefore, the current price may make this purchase attractive. That being said, it is also likely that there will be be less future appreciation with this property than one that is not located next to a cemetery. The patio home/condominium versus a single family home is an entirely different topic, and that exact question is answered in detail on our Realtor.com “Ask a Realtor” site by me in fact. Bottom line, the answer is similar. You are probably paying less now for a patio home than a single family home in the same area, and the patio home will likely have less future appreciation. Location is a very important element when considering buying a property. In fact, many professionals would argue that it is THE most important consideration. However, there are always a variety of positives and negatives that influence a home buyer’s decision, from purchase price to neighborhood safety, to school district, etc. If the other positive elements of this property and lifestyle it provides outweigh the negative of the cemetery, and future appreciation is not the primary goal for you, then the cemetery does not have to be a deal breaker.

Karen Crystal, REALTOR® at Ewing & Associates Sotheby’s International Realty, specializes in estate properties. She brings a unique blend of efficiency, honesty, integrity and business- savvy to her clients.

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