Bryan Vogt's Metro East Illinois Real Estate Blog: July 2010

---Bryan VogtStrano & Associates, Realtors® - GMAC Real Estate(618) 355-5824---O'Fallon IL Real Estate, Condos, Homes for SaleSwansea IL Real Estate, Condos, Homes for SaleBellville IL Real Estate, Condos, Homes for SaleScott AFB PCS Relocation---

There’s a relatively new alternative to the standard water heater tank that you probably have in your utility room. Rather than keeping gallons of water hot and at the ready at all times, these tankless, or “on-demand,” units kick on only when you open the hot-water tap. Then they heat the water instantaneously as it flows, providing you with an endless supply and saving you $100 or more a year in energy costs.
How a tankless unit works
An on-demand system makes hot water only when you need it, explains Millbrook, N.Y., architect Chris Colby, who designs energy efficient houses. When you turn on the shower, for example, water begins flowing through capillary-like pipes in the heater that are surrounded by a powerful gas burner—or electric coils in the case of electrical systems—where it’s heated on the spot. (There are no oil-fired on-demand water heaters on the market.)
As a result, a tankless water heater never runs out of hot water. With a traditional tank, once you use up the ready supply inside, you have to wait for the heater to make more, a process that takes at least 20 minutes, depending on your model. Because an on-demand system heats water as you use it, as long as it has water and fuel, you’ll have hot water.
More importantly, since on-demand units fire only when needed, they’re very efficient. For a typical house, on-demand hot water slashes hot water energy bills by a quarter to a third.
Limits on simultaneous uses
Though on-demand units can keep pumping out hot water all day, they can’t produce a big quantity all at once. With a traditional tank heater, you can shower, run the dishwasher, and do a load of laundry all at the same time. But an on-demand heater can’t handle that much volume and would therefore provide only a trickle to each simultaneous user.
The typical on-demand unit puts out 2.5 gallons per minute (gpm). Top-of-the-line models can put out 5 gpm, enough to handle two uses at the same time, but not the 7.1 gpm required to run the shower, dishwasher, and clothes washer all at once.
When you’re comparing flow rates, pay attention to the rise in temperature being quoted. Energy Star measures gpm based a 77-degree increase in water temperature for the incoming supply, but some companies list their gpm flows at 35- and 45-degree rises. The more heating the water requires to reach the desired temperature, the slower the flow rate.
Installing multiple units
One solution to the limited output problem is to install multiple on-demand units. Because they’re small—about the size of a carry-on suitcase—they can be placed just about anywhere your water line runs: attic, basement, closet, or crawlspace. So you can have two or three units serving different parts of the house, and plenty of hot water.
Having multiple on-demand units won’t reduce your overall household energy efficiency. In fact, it does just the opposite. By bringing the hot water close to where it’s needed, you reduce the energy loss of piping heated water through the cold basement and walls and increase efficiency a full 50% over a standard hot water tank system, about $165 in annual savings for an average household.
High upfront costs
The downside to installing multiple on-demand water heaters is that even one of these systems is quite costly. A gas-fired unit will run you $1,500 to buy and install, nearly double the price of a standard gas water heater, and $575 more than a high-efficiency tank model. And the costs can go up from there: While tank water heaters typically use a half-inch gas line, on-demand units need three-quarter-inch pipe. Making that change costs from $25 to $40 a foot, so if you’re putting one or more units near the kitchen or upstairs bathrooms, you can add many hundreds to the initial costs. On the bright side, if your unit has an Energy Factor of .82 or higher, as many do, you can get a 30% federal tax credit up to $1,500 on purchase and installation costs incurred in 2010. Electric on-demand units cost less, as little as $400 installed. But they don’t qualify for tax credits because they’re less efficient than gas and are better suited for point-of-use applications, such as instant kitchen hot water, rather than a whole-house system, according to Potomac, Md., contractor Jay Irwin.The bottom line is that unless you’re going to invest big bucks in a several on-demand water heaters, these systems work best for small households without a lot of simultaneous hot water needs. For a large family living in a big house, a high-efficiency traditional tank unit still may be a better option. Joe Bousquin’s work has appeared in the Wall Street Journal, Kiplinger’s Personal Finance and Men’s Journal. His 80-year-old home in Sacramento, Calif., has a conventional, gas-fired water heater-for now

---Bryan VogtStrano & Associates, Realtors® - GMAC Real Estate(618) 355-5824---O'Fallon IL Real Estate, Condos, Homes for SaleSwansea IL Real Estate, Condos, Homes for SaleBellville IL Real Estate, Condos, Homes for SaleScott AFB PCS Relocation---

Whether it is your first home or you have been through the process many times, buying a house is always a major investment. If you are like most people, your home will have a significant impact on your financial future. Just as important, your house needs to be a "home", a place where you and your family feel comfortable and can truly enjoy life. I know how important my homes is to me, and that is why I need to ensure that you are informed and prepared before you make your next move. Armed with the advice in this report, you can avoid the costly pitfalls and make the most of your investment. I wish you the best of luck and, as always, invite you to call on me for any and all real estate questions or needs.

Buying real estate is a fun and exciting process. It is filled with hope and excitement for the future and let's face it....it is still what the American Dream is all about. That said, the market can move pretty fast. That does not mean you have to make decisions before you are comfortable, though.

Buying a house is a major investment. For most people, wealth and quailty of life depend greatly on the performance of their real estate investments. That means this is not something you want to rush into. Take time to make sure you are making the right decision for you and your family. Look deeper. Look at the details of a home. Examine the appliances. Consider the view. Experience the property by yourself, with no real estate agents or sellers present. Come back at different times of the day. You need to know what you are getting yourself into before you make a decision.

Also, make sure you hire a professional home inspector and study the results carefully. This will often influence the offer you are willing to make.

There is a fine line between letting a good opportunity pass you by and taking the requsite time to make sure this is the right property for you. That is a decision you have to make, and one you definately don't want to regret. Make sure you are comfortable with your decision and then move boldly ahead. Do not let a houses's positive attributes blind you to very real problems. If you do, the chances are good that you will end up spending much more money than you ever expected down the line.

Once you have found a house that fits your criteria and your price range, your work is not done. There is an old adage that is important at this stage of your decision making process:"You are not just buying the house, you are buying the neighborhood."

In other words, do not forget the big picture. If you love the house but it is not close to shopping, that will quickly detract from your ability to enjoy your home. If you have children, make sure to find out what schools they will attend. Check the safety records for the neighborhood. Consider the city or community as a whole. Are community activities offered? Are there local taxes and if so, what will the cost be to you?

All of these things should be factored into your decision, as well as the offer you are willing to make. Remember, even if these items do not effect you personally, they will factor into your return on investment when the time comes to sell your home. In addition to a house you are buying a lifestyle. Where you live will dictate much of your livelihood. Take a step back, look at the big picture and make sure you are buying into something you want to be a part of.

Real estate transactions are unusual in that you are not dealing with fixed prices. As consumers, we are all accustomed to walking into a store, seeing an item and paying the price on the price tag. However, if given the opportunity to barter and pay less, how much lower would you go?

Well for many home buyers, the tendency is to go extremely low with the idea of, "What can it hurt?" What often happens in these situations , however, is that the offer is viewed as an insult to the seller and the negotiations have begun on the wrong foot.

That is not to say some rare properties do not sell for well under the asking price. However, a wise home buyer will trust his or her real estate agent 's recommendation when it comes to making an offer. Houses sell based on what similar houses in the area recently sold for. Your real estate agent has access to this information and should help you determine what fair market value is for a home. Trust his or her recommendation. This is what they do for a living, and it is something you do every 5-10 years on average.

---Bryan VogtStrano & Associates, Realtors® - GMAC Real Estate(618) 355-5824---O'Fallon IL Real Estate, Condos, Homes for SaleSwansea IL Real Estate, Condos, Homes for SaleBellville IL Real Estate, Condos, Homes for SaleScott AFB PCS Relocation---

For most people, buying a house is one of the most significant investments they will ever make. Therefore, it is not surprising to learn that the home buying process can be a highly charged and emotional process. However, the key to getting the best home for you and your money is to keep emotion out of your home selection as much as possible.

The best way to go about this is to devote some time and give it some real thought. Sit down and discuss what features are most important to you and your family. Create a list of your needs and another list for your desires. Then present these lists to your real estate agent.

One of the ways I help my clients is to provide them with a Buyer Questionnaire. It forces them to sit down and truely evaluate what is most important to them in a house and what is less important. It helps them create a clear picture of what they are looking for, and it helps me find homes that best fit their needs without wasting their valuable time.

The objective here is to not let yourself buy a property just because you fell in love with the kitchen or because it had a heated whirlpool spa. Buyers who buy emotionally and on impulse often wind up regretting their purchase when they realize that their home does not accommodate their true needs - not enough bathrooms, not enough storage space, etc. Additionally, if you do find the perfect home, don't let your emotion hinder your negotiating position. Once the seller knows your are excited, their negotiation muscle is flexed, and your ability to get the best price will be compromised.

Buying a home is exciting, and it should be a fun process. On the other hand, regret is something nobody wants six months later. Enjoy the process, but don't let yourself get caught up in it.