Mark Johnson Custom Homes Blog

Wilmington, NC custom home builder Mark Johnson Custom Homes is excited to share that our local airport, Wilmington International Airport, now offers a real-time Flight Tracker on their website! We understand that international travel is important to many people that may consider moving to the Cape Fear area, and the Flight Tracker is just another exciting attribute to our local airport. Visit their website to see how the Flight Tracker can make your traveling experience that much easier!

When building your own new home, St. James Plantation, NC new home builder Mark Johnson Custom Homes urges you to keep in mind the negative aspects of a garbage disposal. The Cape Fear Public Utility Authority is raising awareness to keep FOG (Fats, Oils, Grease) out of your garbage disposal should you decide to have one installed. In March of 2008, Raleigh, NC banned the installation of garbage disposals in new homes due to the accumulation of grease in sewer systems leading to sewage spills. Raleigh had previously been forced to spend millions annually to flush out the grease in its sewer system with water and chemicals.  

The picture on the right is a sewer (wastewater) pipe that has been clogged due to accumulated grease. Garbage disposals do not “dispose” of food scraps and grease; they merely shred the waste into smaller pieces. It can eventually build up and cause blockages and overflows.

Wilmington, NC new home builder Mark Johnson Custom Homes encourages you to join the University of North Carolina at Wilmington Athletics Department for Seahawk Fanfest on Saturday, November 7^th, 2009.  This FREE event will take place from 4:00 – 6:30 p.m. in the parking lot next to Trask Coliseum (rain location is inside Hanover Gym). 

Seahawk Fanfest will include inflatable games and performances by The School Boys, the UNCW Dance Team, the UNCW Cheerleaders and the UNCW Drumline.  Seahawk Fanfest will also include appearances by UNCW student-athletes and a special appearance by Sammy C. Hawk.   

After Seahawk Fanfest, but sure to stick around when the Men’s Basketball team hosts North Greenville at 7:00 p.m. in Trask Coliseum.  Youth tickets for the game will be just $5.00 when purchased with an adult ticket on the day of the game only.

For more information visit the UNC-Wilmington Athletics website!

North Carolina will be having a Sales Tax Holiday on Energy Star Qualified Products from Friday, November 6th through Sunday, November 8th!

Brunswick County, NC new home builder Mark Johnson Custom Homes encourages you to take advantage of North Carolina’s Sales Tax Holiday on Energy Star products!

According to the NC Department of Revenue, an Energy Star qualified product is “a product that meets the energy efficient guidelines set by the United States Environmental Protection Agency and the United States Department of Energy and is authorized to carry the Energy Star label. Clothes washers, freezers, refrigerators, central air conditioners, room air conditioners, air-source heat pumps, geothermal heat pumps, ceiling fans, dehumidifiers, and programmable thermostats will all be exempt from state and local sales and use tax when purchased during the sale tax holiday period.” Note: This will not include televisions.

For more information, visit the NC Department of Revenue’s website!

Wilmington, NC home builder Mark Johnson Custom Homes encourages you to sign up for our monthly, online e-newsletter, The Precursive Planner.  This dynamic newsletter has fantastic attributes including current articles about the building community, Wilmington, NC and surrounding areas, as well as articles to inform and entertain readers.

The Precursive Planner is a way that Mark Johnson Custom Homes can connect on a more personal level to our customers and trade partners.  The newsletter is a mechanism which allows for important information about Mark Johnson Custom Homes, to be conveyed in an attractive and engaging manner.  The Precursive Planner includes:

• Many articles that provide links to corresponding websites
• Online articles
• Carefully chosen pictures and charts
• Links to local schools, local companies, local weather, current mortgage rates, etc.
• Current and future business opportunities

According to the newsletter service provider, the open rate for The Precursive Planner is three times higher than the national average of other real estate related e-newsletters.  Mark Johnson Custom Homes is able to view who opens the newsletter, how often a certain link is clicked, and the overall interest in an article or topic.  With this information, The Precursive Planner is becoming increasingly more dynamic; changing to satisfy the readers’ needs and interests.

The Precursive Planner is a way that individuals can be kept up to date on relevant information that concerns not only the local building community, but the homeowners that live in Wilmington, NC and the surrounding areas.  Mark Johnson Custom Homes is pleased to have a large contact base that receives The Precursive Planner on a monthly basis.

Visit our website to sign up now!

Jacksonville, NC home builder is proud to share that local our university, UNC Wilmington, met the state deadline for reducing energy consumption over eight months early! Per Senate Bill 668, all North Carolina agencies, including universities, were mandated to reduce energy consumption by 20 percent by July 2010. The University of North Carolina at Wilmington announced this month that it dropped its usage by 28 percent over the past six years, and 11 percent in 2009 alone.

“As a university, we’ve done well in reducing our energy consumption and costs,” said Tom Freshwater, physical plant director for UNC Wilmington. “We’ve cut our energy costs by almost one-third over the past six years, which is a significant savings in both energy and dollars.”

UNCW met their energy savings goal by:
• Building temperature setbacks at night and during weekends and holidays
• Improving the heating/air conditioning controls at the Center for Marine Science
• Standardizing a uniform temperature in buildings across campus
• Replacing/upgrading HVAC equipment and controls in Kenan Auditorium, Dobo Hall, Cameron Hall and Friday Hall on the main campus
• Installing high Seasonal Energy Efficiency Rating (SEER) heat pumps in residence halls

For more information, visit the UNCW News & Events Website!

St. James Plantation Builder Mark Johnson Custom Homes is excited to share that the community has broken ground on a future LEED Certified Clubhouse, The Reserve Club. As a Green home builder, we are familiar with the LEED Certification process, as we have recently completed a LEED Platinum home in Wilmington, NC. The Platinum rating is the highest attainable certification from the U.S. Green Building Council.

St. James Plantation members celebrated the event on October 14, 2009, which included custom club fittings from The Reserve Club golf professionals, a sidewalk sale and a 30-foot putting contest. The 24,000 square foot clubhouse will boast private dining areas, wine room, screened dining porch and a cozy bar.

St. James Plantation is the number one-selling community in the coastal Carolinas and we encourage you to tour their website! For more information on what will be the first LEED Certified Clubhouse in Southeastern North Carolina, click here!

St. James Plantation builder Mark Johnson Custom Homes enjoyed attending the CFGBA’s Green Living Expo and Conference yesterday in historic downtown Wilmington, NC! A particular highlight was hearing GE’s Ecomagination Executive Director Katharine Brass explain GE’s initiatives to find new solutions for energy resources. Below is an excerpt from a Greater Wilmington Business Journal article by Josh Spilker and to read the complete article, click here!

“’We are at the forefront and continue to be thought leaders in how everyone can survive and thrive in a resource-starved world,’ Brass said about GE. She explained how the company that Thomas Edison founded would continue to innovate and develop new technology.

‘We look at what society needs going forward,’ Brass said. ‘You develop what is truly needed.’ And what is needed is new ways of consuming energy. In a set of compelling graphs, Brass explained that if the burgeoning Chinese and Indian populations develop modern conveniences in the same way Americans have, the rate of growth and the provision of energy is not sustainable.”

As a proud supporter of the United Way of the Cape Fear Area, Brunswick County home builder Mark Johnson Custom Homes encourages our readers to dine at Chili’s next week to help raise funds for their efforts!

Jacksonville, NC builder Mark Johnson Custom Homes encourages first-time home buyers to not only understand the $8,000 Federal tax credit, but a lot of other critical information that is available to them. RealtyTimes.com’s Phoebe Chonchua recently wrote an article outlining what first-time buyers should expect research and prepare for. Below is an excerpt and to read the complete article, click here!

“There are many aspects to consider when buying your first home. Your price point, location, lifestyle, expert help, mortgage programs, inspections, how quickly you want/need to move, the list goes on. It can seem like an overwhelming process for first-time buyers. In fact, some shy away and continue to rent simply because they don’t know who to turn to or where to begin. Today there are more resources than ever available with just the click of a mouse; however, that can create information overload! But if you take a breath and relax, I’ll sort through some important factors for home buying. And even if you’re a seller, it’s good to review this material because it helps to remind you where first-time buyers’ mindsets are when they make an offer on your home.

Give yourself more time than you think you need. Due to the housing crisis and credit crunch, the mortgage process can take even longer than it did previously. Searching for a home is averaging about 12 weeks while getting the mortgage process wrapped up can take up to 60 days, according to information released by National Association of REALTORS 2008 Profile of Buyers and Sellers.”