This is a guest post.
Being a savvy homeowner means knowing the difference between throwing money away and investing it into a financial future. Apartments, for example, are nothing but wasted money – piles of your cash stuffed into the pockets of someone else.
Owning a house or condo, however, investors agree, is an intelligent decision that keeps the money flowing within your own assets. Sure, you pay off the mortgage, but when it comes time to sell back that house or condo, that cash comes flooding back to you. Unless, of course, you do not own a house or condo with a Leadership in Energy and Environment Design (LEED) rating.
What’s the difference between an LEED condo and a regular condo? The LEED condo is architecturally designed to optimize heating, water, and electricity systems, while providing overall efficiency in all other housing factors. Plus, an LEED home or condo is designed to be environmentally conscious, saving you money while supporting the environment.
Here’s how it works: in a typical home or condo, heat is lost through leaky insulation. Heat gushes out of all sorts of weak spots, which means your heating system has to work overtime during the winter months. (Same goes for air conditioners during the summer months.) This financial loss continues with leaky faucets and pipes with poor insulation. You don’t get these kind of problems with an LEED condo or home – they’re built to be both environmentally and financially sustainable.
But some people may ask, where can I find one of these mystical homes or condos? Don’t worry – they’re currently being built all over the world, (even in Canada). To give you an idea of what a LEED condo looks like, let’s look at the up-and-coming Evolo condos being built in Montreal. As stated on the Evolo website, “Evolo and Evolo2 are modern 30-storey high-rise condominiums,” giving you all the sensations of a privileged lifestyle. In addition, the condos offer a “walkable community where parks and recreation, boutique shops and waterfront paths are seamlessly combined, all at your doorstep.” That’s right – an environmentally sustainable build that promotes seamless integration with surrounding environments – can’t get much better.
Or can it? Let’s go back to the website: “Every detail has been carefully thought out so as to maximize the wonderful views of the river and of the downtown skyline.” Yup, just when you thought that the LEED condos and the seamless environments were enough, Evolo threw in “views of the river.” This architectural astonishment is located right on a river, giving you waterfront access that is unmatched by the pollutant-spewing spaces hoarding so many cities.
And remember – all of this is designed to save you money down the road, keeping your money where it belongs: in your pocket.
This is a guest post.
