Mark Johnson Custom Homes Blog

As a member of the Wilmington-Cape Fear Home Builders Association, Pender County, NC new home builder Mark Johnson Custom Homes encourages our readers to attend the WCFHBA’s 2010 HomeEXPO! Come out to the Schwartz Center at Cape Fear Community College in Wilmington, NC January 16^th and 17^th, 2010 for over 50 exhibits and 7 seminars, including many concentrated on Green home options. Below is the seminar schedule and for more information, visit www.WilmingtonHomeBuilders.com or call 910-799-2611! 

Pender County, NC remodeler Mark Johnson Custom Homes would like to share an article from Broderick Perkins of RealtyTimes.com. Perkins examined the rising amount of homebuyers that plan to purchase a home as an investment in recent months. Below is an excerpt and to read the complete article, click here!

“More than 12 percent of homebuyers today plan to purchase a home as an investment, compared to less than half, only 5.6 percent, just seven months ago, according to a recent Move.com Homeownership Survey.

Foreclosure buyers account for 25.3 percent of consumers interested in purchasing a home and 42 percent of potential foreclosure buyers regard their purchases as investments, while 57.6 percent plan to live in the foreclosed home themselves.

‘This latest Homeownership Survey validates what many had hoped to see in the housing markets — affordable prices and ample inventories are restoring the appeal of real estate to investors while providing opportunities for first time home buyers to enter the market,’ said Move, Inc.’s chief revenue officer, Errol Samuelson.”

Pender County, NC home builder Mark Johnson Custom Homes is excited to share that the Cape Fear Fencing Association will be hosting a North Carolina Fencing League event on January 23, 2010 in Wilmington, NC. Below is the press release from the CFFA and for more information, visit their website!

“The Cape Fear Fencing Association (CFFA) will host the North Carolina Fencing League’s (NCFL) January 23 tournament at CFFA’s Wilmington location: the lower level of St. Mary’s Tileston Gym at the corner of 5th and Ann Streets.

Established to promote the sport of fencing in high schools in North Carolina, the NCFL offers youth fencers the opportunity to compete at events around the state.  The CFFA’s primary youth team has been competing regularly at NCFL events this season, often finishing in the top-five for their events.  CFFA will be putting together additional youth teams to compete at this event as well.

On January 23 the CFFA will host youth fencers from around the state as they as they arrive to compete in the NCFL tournament.  Turnout is expected to be significant.  More than 50 individual fencers have competed at past events and this will likely be one of the largest local tournaments held.

Tournaments hosted by the Cape Fear Fencing Association are always free to the public, and spectators are encouraged to stop by for a chance to learn more about the sport It is a great opportunities to get an up-close look at a traditional Olympic sport.”

Last month, Pender County, NC Green home builder Mark Johnson Custom Homes blogged on the ways to “Create a Green Kitchen: From Resource Planning to Maintenance”. This month we’d like to share a similar article from the U.S. Green Building Council’s Green Home Guide titled “Choosing Kitchen Countertops: Our Top Picks”. The article examines the countertop materials listed below and to read the complete article, click here!

• Concrete
• Glass
• Tiles
• Paper Composite
• Recycled Plastic
• Terrazzo
• Wood

Pender County, NC custom home builder Mark Johnson Custom Homes would like to share an article by USAToday’s Green House journalist Wendy Koch that was published today. Koch reported that researchers at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia are tweaking tobacco plant genes to increase their oil production and hopefully use them as biofuel. Below is an excerpt and to read the complete article, click here!

“’Tobacco is very attractive as a biofuel because the idea is to use plants that aren’t used in food production, said study co-author Vyacheslav Andrianov, assistant professor of cancer biology at Jefferson Medical College. He added:

‘We have found ways to genetically engineer the plants so that their leaves express more oil. In some instances, the modified plants produced 20-fold more oil in the leaves…

Based on these data, tobacco represents an attractive and promising ‘energy plant’ platform, and could also serve as a model for the utilization of other high-biomass plants for biofuel production.’

The preliminary research has been published online in Plant Biotechnology Journal.

Tobacco, in the form of cigarette butts, is also being studied as a way to better insulate homes.

The London Evening Standard recently reported that the London borough of Harrow is studying innovative technology to recycle the butts into rolls of home insulation. Currently, the butts, about 4,000 of which are dropped in the town center every day, end up in landfills.”

Pender County, NC new home builder Mark Johnson Custom Homes is excited to announce that last month, Rolling Thunder, Inc.’s local North Carolina chapter unveilled a Veteran’s Memorial in Wilmington, NC. Rolling Thunder’s major function is to publicize the POW-MIA issue: to educate the public that many American Prisoners of War were left behind after all previous wars, to help correct the past, and to protect future veterans from being left behind should they become POW-MIA’s. The black granite monument, which was eight years in the making, honors all men and women that have served, both during war or peace.

More than 77,000 veterans live in Southeastern North Carolina and the monument is a testament to their service. Below the monument are engraved brick pavers purchased by family members in recognition of their loved ones. The memorial is located in downtown Wilmington, NC on Water Street, next to the Hilton Riverside.

For more information on Rolling Thunder’s NC-3 Chapter, visit their website!

Courtesy of: starnewsonline.com

Pender County, NC custom home builder Mark Johnson Custom Homes encourages our readers to discover what Pender County, NC has to offer! The Pender County Government’s website is full of information like what to do, where to eat, where to stay, events and videos to help you further explore Pender County!

Visit www.VisitPender.com to see all of this including an interactive map. You can also follow them on Twitter and Facebook and request visitor information.

Pender County, NC home builder Mark Johnson Custom Homes has enjoyed blogging the past year on our LEED Platinum Green home in Wilmington, NC, the Green features we incorporated in the home, and other Green options available to homeowners. With that in mind, we’d like to share an article from the U.S. Green Building Council’s Green Home Guide that covers nearly every aspect of creating a Green kitchen. The following information is covered and to read the complete article, click here!

DESIGN FOR REDUCED RESOURCE USE

• Refrigerators

• Dishwashers

• Lighting

DESIGN FOR IMPROVED INDOOR ENVIRONMENT

• Exhaust Hood

• Stoves

• Plumbing

BUILDING MATERIALS

• Flooring

• Cabinets

• Countertops

CONSTRUCTION AND REMODELING

MAINTENANCE AND USE

• Refrigerator

• Dishwasher

• Floors & Counters

• Exhaust Hood

• Plumbing

• Cleaning Products 

• Remove screens from windows and install storm windows
• Clean out gutters and downspouts
• Store firewood at least 30 feet away from your home
• Familiarize responsible family members with the gas main valve and other appliance valves
• Clean the clothes dryer exhaust duct, damper and space under the dryer
• Make sure all electrical holiday decorations have tight connections
• Check the attic for adequate ventilation
• Clean the kitchen exhaust hood and air filter
• Check the water hoses on the clothes washer, refrigerator icemaker and dishwasher for cracks and bubbles
• Test all ground-fault-circuit-interrupter (GFCI) outlets

Courtesy of: StateFarm.com