It's all very good to say that we promote and support going green with home construction, but how easy is it to put earth-friendly ideas into practice? I am a Realtor, with EcoBroker training, and it is from this perspective that I bring you my story.
Glenn and I are in the process of building an environmentally sensitive home on the banks of the Susquehanna River, where it runs between York and Lancaster Counties in Pennsylvania.
Although the home is now well under way, I will start at the beginning and let you see the process from plan to completion. It has been quite a surprise to us that building green has been added so much to the cost of construction. Our hope of course is that it will be worth the expense and effort as we see lower utility bills, increased comfort, and a healthy environment for our grandchildren who will eventually live in the home.Glenn's family has been in Pennsylvania since colonial days, so we admire the pioneering spirit, but our intent was to take advantage of the financial benefits of an energy efficient home, more than to continue the Musser family traditions of being on the leading edge of progress.
So lets start with the property and how we acquired it. We have always known that we wanted a waterfront home, but had looked in Florida and other costal states. It just didn't occur to us to search for real estate in York and Lancaster that had access to recreational waterfront. Several years ago I was selling homes in Bennett Run, in the Northeastern School district of York County, and driving home to Eastern Lancaster County. We decided that it would be good to have a place between the two counties were I could stay overnight occasionally, and possible meet with clients from time to time. We are pretty basic in our belief that God guides our plans, so we began praying to find just the right place in just the right time.
I have always rambled over the back roads of Central Pennsylvania and eventually stumbled down a rugged road along the river. It was near dusk in late summer and as I wound around a bend I was confronted by the view that you will see below. It was a heart thumping experience!
The next time I "just happened" to take the turn up this somewhat forbidding road several months later there was a "For Sale" sign on the little cottage that was the home of James and Rita Kreidler. Cell phones buzzed and two days later (on my birthday) we wrote our offer to purchase the little house. It was a true case of buying the dream! The plumbing had issues, there was little or no insulation, the windows rattled in the slightest breeze, and there were spiders! Oh how I hate spiders! But we both knew that this was our place... a bit of a gift from God.
To be continued..............
Gateway Realty Inc.
120 North Pointe Blvd,
Lancaster, Pa. 17601
800-765-3247 ext 545
cell 717-615-3179
