WASHINGTON, July 11 -The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) today told Congress how its members have been in the forefront during the past decade in promoting and developing energy-efficient and environmentally-friendly construction techniques for the mainstream home builder.

"More than 100,000 homes have been built and certified by voluntary, builder-supported green building programs around the country since the mid-1990s," Bob Jones, vice president and secretary of NAHB and a home builder from Bloomfield Hills, Mich., said in testimony before the House Small Business Committee. "The green movement in residential construction derives much of its strength from its voluntary nature, which provides builders and developers the flexibility that is essential for incorporating the principles of sustainable design."

NAHB members, the majority of whom are small business owners, currently build about 80 percent of all new homes in the U.S.

"By the end of this year, more than half of our members will be incorporating green practices into the development, design and construction of these new units," said Jones. "While media interest in climate change and global warming is a relatively recent occurrence, NAHB has been consistently ahead of the curve in working to develop affordable, energy-efficient and environmentally construction techniques. In 2008, we will be hosting our 10th annual National Green Building Conference in New Orleans."

NAHB is also collaborating with the International Code Council to bring uniformity to sustainable building by developing the first and only national consensus-based residential green building standard that will be certified and accredited by the American National Standards Institute and based on the two-year-old NAHB Model Green Home Building Guidelines, Jones said.

Encompassing single and multifamily construction, remodeling and land development, the National Green Building Standard is expected to be completed in early 2008.

"Ultimately the goal is to develop a standard that is flexible enough to adjust to the various resource and energy concerns in the varying climate zones around the country, while at the same time encourage innovation in green technology that is already dramatically shifting the market," he said.

Jones pointed out the advantages of NAHB's guidelines, unveiled in January 2005 and derived from a consensus of more than 60 industry stakeholders, including environmentalists, building product manufacturers, architects and research consortia. There are now 24 local green building programs based on the guidelines and more than 100 are in development.

"Building for sustainability is what every builder should be focused on right now" said Vinny Goldsmith a local Anne Arundel County Realtor and expert on Maryland New Home Construction.

"The guidelines allow builders to make decisions that positively impact energy efficiency, resource conservation and indoor environmental quality throughout the entire design and construction process," he said, noting that NAHB has no financial stake in the success of its green building guidelines. "Green means doing the right thing for the builder, the home owner and most importantly, the environment."

Congress can foster private sector innovation in green construction for the millions of homes that are waiting to be built, Jones said, by keeping the market free of mandates, striving towards the greatest energy- and resource-efficient buildings available, allocating funds for providing education and training in green construction on a broader scale, and extending and expanding federal tax credits that passed as part of the Energy Policy Act of 2005.

Federal tax credits encourage the construction of new energy efficient homes, promote the use of energy-saving home improvements for existing homes and spur new innovation that will result in even greater energy savings in the residential built environment, he said.

Maryland Agent Appears on TV Show

Lisa Bacigalupo, an agent with Long & Foster�s Bethesda Gateway Office, recently participated in a filming of the new HGTV show, "Sleep On It" (episode # 113, airing in July). The concept of the program is the prospective purchaser is shown two available homes, from which they choose one to spend the night in, to try it on for size, then choose between the two.
Lisa was working already with the purchaser�s when she got a call from the production company, Edelman Productions. Lisa was asked to set up everything, find two homes suitable for her clients, and homes with a twist.

Ellen Katz, branch manager of Weichert, Realtors� Potomac Office, announced that several sales associates have been honored for their achievements in March.
Marcy Miller, a member of the Executive�s Club, led the office in dollar volume for the month. Million Dollar Club member Colleen Dolak led the way in revenue units and sales, earning the honor of top seller. Topping the branch in listings sold was Michele Weinstein, a member of the Executive�s Club.
Leading the way in listings for the second month in a row was Helen King, a member of the Chairman of the Board Premiere Club. King has been a licensed real estate agent for more than 35 years and has earned a GRI (Graduate, REALTOR Institute) designation. She was also named to the Montgomery County Board of Realtors� "Hall of Fame" Lifetime Sales Club.

Gordon Harris, office manager of Weichert, Realtors� Potomac Village Office, is pleased to announce that several sales associates have been honored for their achievements in March.
Earning the honor of top producer was Executive�s Club member Matthew Green, who led the office in dollar volume and revenue units. Georgette Hoponick, a member of the President�s Club, led the way in listings and sales. She is a graduate of Weichert�s management training program and is also a member of the Executive�s Gold Club, signifying a high level of sales financed through Weichert Financial. Topping the branch in listings sold was Dale Gold, a member of the Chairman�s Club and President�s Gold Club.

Valerie Huffman, Regional Vice President of Weichert, Realtors, announced Michael Spaner has been named Gold Services Manager at the Gaithersburg/North Potomac Office.
In his new position, Spaner will help clients take advantage of Weichert Financial�s Gold Services Program, which streamlines the mortgage process and provides homeownership solutions for a wide array of services encompassing Title Insurance, Homeowners Insurance, Home Protection Plan and Weichert Home Connections services.

Long & Foster Realtors will hold seminars on "A Career in Real Estate." The seminars address the questions of people who have often thought of going into business for themselves in real estate but do not know how to investigate the "pros and cons." The career night seminars are free of charge and open to the public.
May 9
* Bethesda Office, 4920 Elm Street, Suite 250, 6 p.m. Call Robyn Waltz at 301-215-6444.
* Bethesda Avenue Office, 4733 Bethesda Ave., 6 p.m. Call Scott Mattingly at 240-497-1702.
* Potomac/Cabin John Office, 7719 Tuckerman Lane, Potomac, 6 p.m. Call Susann Haskins at 301-469-4700.
May 10
* Potomac Office, 10000 Falls Road, Suite 2, 11 a.m. Call Barbara Goldsteen at 301-299-4663. You must call to register.
May 15
Potomac Village Office, 9812 Falls Road, Potomac, 7 p.m. Call Timothy Harper at 301-983-0060.
May 16
* Bethesda Gateway Office, 4650 East West Highway, Bethesda, 6 p.m. Call Carole Maclure at 301-215-4784 or Ned Rich at 301-215-4759. You must call to register.
* North Bethesda/Rockville Office, 11540 Rockville Pike, North Bethesda, 10 a.m. Call Gladys Steiner at 301-468-0606.
May 23
Bethesda Avenue Office, 4733 Bethesda Ave., 6 p.m. Call Scott Mattingly at 240-497-1702.

John Pobiak, led the Potomac office of Maryland Home Realty in dollar volume, listings and sales for the month of April. As a top producer with 23 years of business, John has 900 successful transactions and over $700 million in total sales. He specializes in high-end properties, land and custom home advisory services.