"Green" Real Estate?

"Green" real estate, this is a catch phrase being throw around more and more everyday. Before I start off putting ecologically minded individuals on the defense, I want to say that I believe that we all need to weigh the costs involved in owning a home, building a new home, driving our cars and other activities that have an impact on our environment, but I think we all need to use some common sense. I can appreciate the care and consideration put into deciding to "go green", but I think we need to look at the reason we each come to the conclusion that "green" is the way to go.

The media and other information outlets has really taken hold of the ecologically friendly concept of using energy efficient appliances, recycled materials, products manufactured from renewable or long lasting synthetic elements. I think we need to look behind the reason for this. Naturally there is the very obvious point of protecting the planet we live on for future generations, but I want to pose a point of view. I think "green" is bringing in a lot of green. I've read in several places that the "green" revolution is a trillion dollar industry. I don't want to be a conspiracy theorist, but there are always ulterior motives for many, many approaches to different situations. The "green" revolution is another in a long list of counter cultural directions. Remember the whole "say no to drugs" that Nancy Reagan was spear-heading? How about the slogan locally, "Baltimore, the city that reads." which Mayor Schmoke was the originator? One soapbox that has been around for as long as I can remember is this one, "Help control the pet population, have your pet spayed or neutered." All of these statements were most definitely born out of a genuine concern to prevent something bad from happening or preventing harm to someone or something.

My only concern is that if the whole reason of going "green" is to conserve, then shouldn't all of the most ecologically friendly options be presented? In fact, I think that going "green" is actually not very green at all! Compact fluorescent light bulbs are definitely a huge energy saver, but have you looked at their prices? How about geo-thermal HVAC systems? They certainly can save a ton of expense on your heating or cooling bills, but their cost to install is triple to quadruple the cost of a conventional system. How much are you saving if you are spending double to triple the expense just to feel good about "doing your part"? Also, frequently when people decide to purchase "green" energy products, they don't change their habits at all. Actually, they feel a sense of freedom and end up using more energy. Kind of like eating twice as many reduced calorie cookies.

To me, the best way to go "green" is to buy an existing home for sale or to repair the one you have. Building a new house on land previously used to farm corn or support cattle just takes another piece of our planet and turns it into a tax producing, carbon producing lot. Wouldn't our economy be better off if the 10-18 month inventory of homes we currently see across the country, were reduced to 6 months ? New home builders would have to be more competitive with their prices and those who couldn't compete could supplement their business by remodelling or rehabbing properties. I know there are situations where this might not be feasible, but I think that as Americans we are a society that thinks dispose first, repair second.

My point of writing this is not to bash those who have a genuine concern for the environment, I honestly appreciate the time that is put into thought and actions to help keep our planet as healthy as possible. My only concern is that "green" has become the next Starbucks, Snapple, or Calvin Klein. The concept of green should extend into every aspect of your life. If this were to happen, not only would our planet be healthier, but so would our economy, our bodies and our government.