On Common Ground Magazine: Efficient and Resilient Homes

 “One thing our industry has to get past — and I get this all the time in the GREEN designation class — is the idea that buildings have to breathe,” he says. “Just so we’re clear, that’s BS. “One thing our industry has to get past — and I get this all the time in the GREEN designation class — is the idea that buildings have to breathe,” he says. “Just so we’re clear, that’s BS.” Craig Foley

ScratchThat Podcast - Discussion of Sustainability and the Real Estate Industry

I had the great opportunity to speak with Emily Wells Chenevert on her excellent ScratchThat podcast. She asked me about sustainability, NAR, and high-performance home value among other things. The entire series that Emily has put together is well-worth the listen as she has interviewed leaders from across the real estate industry. Listen to the podcast at www.scratchpodcast.com/podcasts/craig-foley

Looks like I ruffled some feathers...

www.housingwire.com/articles/48462-will-climate-change-impact-the-housing-market-realtors-slug-it-out-online

Boston.com: Just listed: An energy-efficient Weston antique with a yoga studio for $4.9 million

Thanks Jim Morrison for the excellent write up in boston.com about this very special home. Grand opening is Sunday from 1-4 so you can take a peek at 346 Highland St., Weston, MA

http://realestate.boston.com/buying/2019/04/11/weston-antique-with-yoga-studio

LAER Realty Partners Joins the Pearl Broker Advantage Network

Very excited to announce that LAER Realty Partners and Pearl Certification have announced a very exciting partnership!

https://pearlcertification.com/laer-joins-pearl-broker-advantage

Climate Change: We Don’t Have 50 Years to Wait

There are a number of reasons for the real estate industry to stick their head in the sand about the topic of climate change. I can’t tell you how proud I am of the National Association of REALTORS to allow me to frankly address the topic in the March-April 2019 edition of REALTOR Magazine.

https://magazine.realtor/news-and-commentary/commentary/article/2019/02/climate-change-we-don-t-have-50-years-to-wait

Foley named as chair of GBAR committee on sustainability

Happy to see the real estate industry move forward on these initiatives - there are dozens of #sustainabilitywarriors across the country that have been chipping away at this year after year. Obviously there are huge energy, water and environmental challenges in front of us, but we now have enough of a collective voice to make an impact.
#REthink39

https://patch.com/massachusetts/winchester/local-broker-named-new-task-force

LAER Realty Partners and the Clean Energy Economy

“The Massachusetts clean energy economy and the real estate industry are directly related. I am proud to join the LAER team and make sustainability part of our company's DNA. “

www.laerrealty.com/posts/laer-and-the-clean-energy-economy

The Process Of High-Performance Home Valuation In Section: Case Study: Valuing High Performance By Craig Foley Peer Reviewed by Jonathan Kantar

Northeast Sustainable Energy Association (NESEA) asked if I would submit an article on the process of high-performance home valuation for the Fall Edition of BuildingEnergy Magazine. The three documents mentioned in the article should be used in the valuation process of any HPH, spec, custom built or resale.

https://www.buildingenergymagazine-digital.com/eneb/0218_fall_2018/MobilePagedArticle.action?articleId=1422004#articleId1422004

Research now Shows Solar Adds Value to Real Estate

"Comparative marketing analysis can be very difficult because there may not be homes in the neighborhood with solar PV and if they do, the posting agent that entered info into the Multiple Listing Service almost certainly didn’t list the critical information we need to value it on a home," Foley observes.

NAR Green Designation #NARAnnual #Boston

Hey there Realtors - get your Green Designation in Boston as part of the annual conference package!

Register for a special offering of the #NARGREEN course on Wed., 10/31 at #NARAnnual for just $75 early bird pricing! Learn about consumer demand for green homes, define smart and green features, discuss cost benefits of green. http://bit.ly/2LiCaf0

Buyers Value E+ Solutions Project Over Built-to-Code Project

Winchester, MA April 16, 2018 – RE/MAX Leading Edge Agent, Craig Foley recently represented the sale of the E+ Solutions LLC Highland St. project in the Fort Hill neighborhood of Boston.  The project, an ultra-high performance home, commanded an impressive 22.7% premium per square foot than its built-to-code competitor down the street. 

"Craig is a national expert in green home marketing and valuation,” said Linda O’Koniewski, CEO, RE/MAX Leading Edge. “His expertise gives developers and homeowners a clear advantage in conveying the value of green homes to home buyers, their agents and lenders."

http://remax.leadingedgeagents.com/blog/highefficiencyhomes?utm_content=70156352&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook

REALTORMag Sustainability Summit article

Another article in REALTORMag about last week's Sustainability Summit hosted by NAR in Washington, D.C. So many industry leaders were in attendance including Jeremy Crawford, Sandra Adomatis, SRA, LEED Green Associate, Lauren Hansen, John Barrows, Ben Hoen, Gabe Klein, George Karayannis, Jaclyn S. Toole, Jamie Johnson to name a few. Great that NAR leadership Elizabeth Mendenhall, Heather Ozur, Connie Hettinga, and Kevin Sears were so engaged...and special thanks to our excellent NAR staff Amanda Stinton, Marc Gould and Russell Riggs for this outstanding event. Note to self: good to sit next to Pres elect so you are included in photos, lol...

NAR Sustainability Summit 2017

"Craig Foley, GREEN, a sustainability expert with RE/MAX Leading Edge in Somerville, Mass., said introducing the topic of energy efficiency to clients can affect transactions in both positive and negative ways, depending on your preparedness to explain the subject wisely. To mitigate problems, practitioners should get specific training on how to sell energy-efficient homes, he advised."

Best Practices of Listing a Solar PV Home

Here's a teaser video for the project I worked on with Elevate Energy to establish a best practices for listing solar PV homes. Hopefully full class will be available by the end of June for CE's in most states www.youtube.com/watch?v=OBz2HpPpphE

There is a link at the end of the short video where you can sign up for the latest info about the project.

Realtor Craig Foley, Chief of Energy Solutions at RE/MAX Leading Edge on Home Energy Labeling

Warren Group Banker & Tradesman May 2017 interview home energy scores - balancing real estate industry worries versus buyer's need for information on operating costs of a home...found at https://vimeo.com/215426290

Roadmap to Auto-populate Solar PV Data into MLS is Published!

Very proud to have been part of the core team of this Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory project to create a road map for implementing solar PV auto-pop data into the MLS.

More info can be found at https://emp.lbl.gov/publications/capturing-sun-roadmap-navigating-data