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In the 1980’s when the Energy Efficient Home Team™ (EEHT) built their first Ecobuilt™ energy efficient home development in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania the Energy Efficient Mortgage (EEM) was in its infancy. Owens-Corning Fiberglas Corporation helped pioneer the development of the EEM through the Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae) and the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (Freddie Mac) to support their builder program known as the Thermal Crafted™ Home program. The Energy Efficient Home Team™ (EEHT) participated in this program. As builder participants, EEHT received extensive support from Owens Corning Fiberglass, such as computerized home energy performance audits, and preferential mortgage processing for their home buyers. “Both institutions recognize that homeowners who spend less on energy bills may well have more money available for mortgage payments.” The greater the energy efficiency of a home the less the occupants will pay for home heating and home cooling. “Under the program, both Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac allow lenders to raise from the standard 28 percent (loan/debt) to as high as 32 percent the maximum amount of the borrower’s monthly gross income that may be used for principal, interest, taxes, and insurance (PITI).” Owens’ computerized energy performance audits provided valuable information about the energy efficiency of the Ecobuilt™ homes with the majority of the buyer’s mortgages being an EEM. Now 20 years later in the 21st century, mortgage lenders still continue to favor a home that is energy efficient because they know the cost for home heating and home cooling will be less than that of a home of similar size that is not energy efficient. The basic principle has not changed—the less money being spent to pay home heating and home cooling the more money there is available to pay the mortgage. National consumer awareness of the Energy Efficient Mortgage (EEM) is not much greater now that it was in the 1980’s. The EEM is not a new mortgage program as some would have you think. As industry leaders in the field of energy efficient home technology the Energy Efficient Home Team™ constantly monitors, researches and investigates programs and innovations affecting the industry. If you happen to live in Texas, Colorado, California, or Oregon where the vast majority of new homes being built are energy efficient homes it should not require a lot of research to locate an EEM lender. An internet search of mortgage lenders produces a significant number of possibilities with very few lenders specifically promoting the EEM. If you do not live in a region of the United States where an emphasis on energy efficiency in homes is a priority most likely it will take a bit of dedicated research effort to locate a mortgage lender that is familiar with and that participates in the EEM program even though lenders favor homes that are energy efficient. With the recent surge in energy costs consumers are feeling the painful consequences of owning a home that is not energy efficient. It may be that consumers in their efforts to relieve themselves of the burdens they feel from the high cost of energy create the demand for the EEM causing the mortgage industry to respond with more enthusiasm and effort. Copyright © 2006, Siti Crook, Energy Efficient Home Team™
Article Source: http://www.energyefficienthomearticles.com
The Energy Efficient Home Team™ is a success story in energy efficient home technology dating back to the mid-1980s. They have proven time and again that their Ecobuilt™ building envelope technology makes them the 21st century’s leading experts in energy efficiency in homes. Additional information about energy efficient homes and the Energy Efficient Home Team™ may be found at energy efficient home articles.
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