• Frugal Framing

    Carpenters love wood. The smell of fresh sawdust on a crisp fall morning, the slap and ring of hammers on boards, the sturdy feel of a new house frame—what's not to love?

     

  • Solar, So Good

    Home buyers at three Lennar neighborhoods in Northern California will be surprised to learn that their new house will come with a mini power plant. The Sacramento division of the national builder is offering a solar power system on all its houses as a standard feature.

     

  • Carbon Counting

    Home buyers in Seattle will be the first in the nation with the ability to obtain a “carbon-neutral mortgage” from local real estate lenders. Under such programs, the lender agrees to make a donation to offset the greenhouse gas the new home will generate in the first year.