Mark Johnson Custom Homes Blog

While most beaches are experiencing a decline in tourism and overall revenue this year, Brunswick County’s Ocean Isle Beach has proven to be recession-proof. Local businesses are maintaining previous year’s revenues and tourists are still coming to visit the non-commercial beach. Brunswick County, NC home builder Mark Johnson Custom Homes encourages you to consider Ocean Isle Beach for your next home or investment. Visit their site for information on golf, shopping, events and real estate.

Brunswick County Custom Home Builder Mark Johnson Custom Homes relies on Electronics 2 You for all of their clients’ electronic needs. They integrate state-of-the-art audio, video, communications, automation and lighting equipment into both new and existing homes. Below is an excerpt from their e-newsletter with valuable lighting tips. For more information on Electronics 2 You, visit their site, sign up for their newsletter,  or call them at 910-397-0953.

Lights are a staple in every home, but that doesn’t mean your switches should be like everyone else’s. With a few simple tweaks, the fixtures can do more than simply illuminate your home with a bit of lighting control. They can curb your energy use, evoke ambiance, and protect your home, for example. Here are ten simple ways to optimize your lights’ full potential. 

1. Put Them on a Timer. Most families follow a fairly routine weekday schedule, such as being out the door at 7 a.m. and back at 6 p.m. By putting your lights on a timer, you won’t have to remember to turn them off every time you leave for work or school. The timer can signal them back on so that the house is well-lit for your return.
2. Use an Astronomical Clock. Many people find that astronomical clocks are more effective at keeping the lights on a schedule. Astronomical timers base their on and off times on the rising and setting of the sun, so they’re able to compensate for seasonal changes.
3. Update with Dimmers. Experts say that dimming your lights by just 25 percent can save 20 percent in energy use. Minimal dimming is often imperceptible to the naked eye.
4. Use What Nature Provides. Often, the sun that shines through a home’s windows can adequately illuminate a space. A sunlight sensor can tell certain lights to dim or turn off whenever there’s enough sunlight to handle the job.
5. Carve a Pathway. We’ve all groped our way to the kitchen or bathroom in the middle of the night. When connected to sensors and a control system, the light fixtures can illuminate a pathway to your destination whenever you step out of bed or open the front door, for example.
6. Integrate Security. Your home’s lights and a security system can work well together, providing your home an extra layer of protection. Say it’s after midnight when the backyard motion sensor detects someone or something in the backyard. It can signal the lights to flash in an attempt to scare away the intruder. The same thing can happen should the system detect a break in or a fire, but as a way to lead emergency crews to your house.
7. Put in Keypads. All those banks of light switches in your house can be replaced with one single keypad. Each button on the keypad can be assigned (and labeled) to a specific switch. You’ll no longer need to remember which switch controls which light, and one keypad looks better on the wall than a row of a half-dozen switches.
8. Set the Scene. Lighting keypads relay their commands to lights through a lighting control system. A custom electronic professional (sometimes a handy homeowner) can program the buttons on a keypad to dim and brighten groups of lights to specific intensity levels. These lighting scenes can be designed for special occasions (parties and holidays), common activities (movie time, dinner) or to simply enhance the appearance of the artwork and architecture of your home.
9. Make a Statement. The keypads available with lighting control systems come in a rainbow of colors and styles. Choose the ones that will complement your decorating scheme.
10. Install a Complete System. Your lights can do all of the above, and more, when they’re connected to a lighting control system. Often, other devices can be controlled by the system, giving you the ability to turn on your favorite music and dim the lights at the same time by pressing one button on a keypad, for example.

In a recent report by Realty Times reporter Kenneth R. Harney, Harney found real estate investors buying houses at discount prices have begun to focus more on energy efficiency as a marketable benefit. Instead of simply doing the usual renovations, such as paint jobs and landscaping to turn around properties for resale or rental, growing numbers of investors are emphasizing energy efficiency improvements to increase market values and cut marketing times.

Research studies have found that houses with high energy-efficiency ratings sell at premiums ranging anywhere from seven to 14 percent over comparable, non-efficient houses, and take fewer days on the market to sell.

Brunswick County, NC home remodeler Mark Johnson Custom Homes, Inc understands Green renovations give a competitive advantage to homeowners in today’s market. Green renovations are intended to drastically lower energy usage and carbon emissions, and offer Energy Performance Scores from independent auditors. “Today’s homeowners are both price-conscious and environmentally savvy, so ensuring their home will be more energy efficient post-renovation is one of our top goals,” stated Mark Johnson.

To read the complete article by Kenneth R. Harney, click here.

To view our recently completed LEED Platinum home in Wilmington, NC, click here and enter the Username “51” and Password “2009”. LEED Platinum is the highest attainable certification by the U.S. Green Building Council. LEED certification is also available for home remodels.

As a Wilmington, NC Green Home Builder, Mark Johnson Custom Homes understands the urgency for homeowners to utilize real-time monitoring and management of energy usage. AMI (Advanced Metering Infrastructure) is an advanced metering system that enables these technology initiatives. Control4, an IP-based home control and entertainment systems provider, has received $17.3 million from investors to fund their AMI efforts. To read more, click here.

To optimize the monetary savings from Control4, team it with TED (The Energy Detective). Mark Johnson Custom Homes is currently using TED at their Green home in Landfall Country Club in Wilmington, NC. “Being able to monitor the energy usage in real-time is very beneficial. It shows us what lifestyle changes we need to make to ensure the Green features of the home are used at their highest potential,” noted Mark Johnson.

Wilmington, NC electronic experts Electronics 2 You specializes in installing the Control4 system and The Energy Detective. Visit their site for more information!

St. James Plantation Home Builder Mark Johnson Custom Homes, Inc would like to introduce our readers to the FHA’s Energy Efficient Mortgage program (EEM). EEM helps homebuyers or homeowners save money on utility bills by enabling them to finance the cost of adding energy efficiency features to new or existing housing as part of their FHA insured home purchase or refinancing mortgage.

EEM is one of many FHA programs that insure mortgage loans–and thus encourage lenders to make mortgage credit available to borrowers who would not otherwise qualify for conventional loans on affordable terms (such as first time homebuyers) and to residents of disadvantaged neighborhoods (where mortgages may be hard to get). Borrowers who obtain FHA’s popular Section 203(b) Mortgage Insurance for one to four family homes are eligible for approximately 96.5 percent financing, and are able to fold closing costs and the upfront mortgage insurance premium into the mortgage. The borrower must also pay an annual premium.

For more information, click here.

New Hanover County Home Builder Mark Johnson Custom Homes encourages North Carolina residents to take advantage of the no sales tax opportunity from Friday, August 7th-Sunday, August 9th. State sales tax will not be added to items such as clothing apparel, school supplies, sporting equipment and computers. Some items are subject to a price cap; visit the North Carolina Department of Revenue’s website for more information.

Taxpayers and businesses may call the N.C. Department of Revenue’s Taxpayer Assistance and Collections Center at 1-877-252-3052 with any questions about the sales tax holiday.