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On Saturday, June 21st, Sustainable Fairfax presented a panel of local Certified EcoBrokers Julie Vogt, and Rachel DeMicco, Green Real Estate professional Jonathan Marks, Mortgage Green’s Tomek Rondio and local Certified Green Building Professional, Graham Irwin. They discussed their knowledge of the rapidly changing world of “Green Homes”.
Participants learned during this presentation, what a Green Home is, buying and selling a green home, financing a green home, renovating a home to become “greener” and what “green washing” is and how to steer clear. A question and answer period will followed the presentation to begin the dialogue about local opportunities.
This event was sponsered by Fairfax Lumber. Learn more about them on our "about" page under sponsors ! Click the read more button for bios and notes on this event!
 
Julie Vogt and Rachel DeMicco are both long time Marin County residents, Certified EcoBrokers and Realtors with Tam Realty in San Rafael. Tam Realty is a Certified Green Business with Marin County.
EcoBroker® is an education and certification program for real estate professionals and related real estate industry affiliates who care about the environment and want to promote energy-efficient and  green features in homes and buildings.
The EcoBroker® logo is the symbol of environmentally responsible and sustainable practices in the real estate industry.
 Johnathan Marks is a long time Marin resident who has 18 years of experience in the Real Estate industry. Jonathan's lifelong commitment to sustainability led him to become a Marin Green Business and a Certified Green Building professional through Build It Green. Jonathan is Director on the Marin Association of Realtors Board of Directors, sits on the Board of Clean Offer and serves as Vice President on the Board of a local non-profit school.
 Tomek Rondio, is the Founder and CEO of Mortgagegreen, Inc.
By 'greening' the real estate financial sector, Mr. Rondio envisioned a profound opportunity to reduce global warming, reduce waste, reduce fossil-fuel use (and associated destructive global effects), enhance healthy living and restore credibility to the real estate finance industry. Prior to Mortgagegreen, Inc., Mr. Rondio spent 20 years in various environmental capacities including CEO of Environmental Engineering Corp, CEO of Actionsource, Inc. and environmental technologies advisor to Commerce Secretary Bill Daley, Clinton Administration. Mr. Rondio holds BSME and BSIE degrees.
 Graham Irwin has been working in the construction industry as a carpenter, general contractor and building designer since 1991. He relocated to the Bay area in 2001 and has built a successful design and consulting practice while restoring his own home, a 1922 California Bungalow. Dedicated to making the construction process accessible to the public, Graham teaches popular Community Extension classes on building permits, green building, remodeling and construction. He is anNCBDC Certifi ed Professional Building Designer, a Professional Member of the American Institute of Building Design� and a licensed general contractor. A committed environmentalist, Graham is a member of Architects, Designers and Planners for Social Responsibility, The US Green Building Council and Build It Green, and is a Certified Green Building Professional.
GREEN REAL ESTATE PANEL,
SAT JUNE 21, SFX BACKYARD, 10 am-12 pm
On Saturday morning, June 21
Sustainable Fairfax hosted a Green Real Estate Panel in the backyard
of the Sustainability Center. The panel included Tomik Rondio (CEO of
Mortgage Green), Julie Vogt and Rachel Dimicco (both Eco-Brokers
with Tam Realty),
Graham Irwin (Green Building
Design, Construction and Remodeling), and Jonathan Marks (an Eco-Broker
with Pacific Union).
The 5 speakers covered a wide
range of topics relating to Green Building Design, Green Building, Green
Remodeling, Green Mortgages, and “Green-Washing”. Some of the topics
specifically covered by the panelists included overall home energy efficiency,
indoor air quality, double paned windows, skylights, heating/cooling
systems, programmable thermostats, insulation, using appliances with
Energy Star ratings, proper placement of appliances in the home, planting
trees for shade, venting and ducts for adequate ventilation, installing
ceiling fans and placement of solar panels on the roof.
Whether you are thinking of
building, buying or selling a Green Home in the current market, it is
a good idea to be aware of what your options are concerning finding
Certified Real Estate Brokers, Builders and Lenders that can address
your needs realistically and help make your purchase, sale or home building
process proceed as smoothly as possible.
There is an on-going process
of research and education necessary to keep up to date with the ever
changing latest industry standards. Periodically reviewing your energy
bills are a good place to start so you can see what you are currently
spending overall in terms of usage. There are companies that will
come in to your home and do a complete energy evaluation to let you
know just where you are and what you can do to make needed improvements
Overall, Green properties have
higher real estate values, so it is important to know what to look for
or what to provide when choosing green features for your home.
Building green is not necessarily easier, or cheaper, but if one tries
to use as many local products as possible it can make a definite difference
in the long run. Sometimes you have to think outside the “green box”
in order to accomplish your goals and there are many local salvage dealers
available to help you find just that unusual item that you are looking
for.
As Jonathan Marks put it, “A
house is the ultimate recycled product”, and building for the long
term, our kids and the future should be our primary concern.
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