Buyer Beware

This past month 2 of our children have purchased homes, one in Ann Arbor and one in Northville. We counseled both to ask to see utility bills for a year, just to get a sense of the costs they will be facing. This past Sunday, as we were going through the Northville home, Tom asked the realtor about these bills, and she replied that she can ask the family, but under Michigan law they are not obligated to produce them. In fact, our future son-in-law, Brad, asked for the bills for the Ann Arbor home repeatedly but never did receive them.

Tom and I were pretty surprised by this law. Tom likens it to buying a car without knowing the mileage. The Northville realtor tried to explain the situation by stating that since everyone sets their thermostats at different levels, it would be hard to know what the true cost for another family would be. Keeping with the car analogy, that would mean that since we all drive differently, there is no point in giving out mileage ratings. So right now we have a situation where new homeowners are buying a home without any understanding of the amount of energy they will use and the associated costs. I think that information would be helpful.

Perhaps this was a moot issue a number of years ago when energy costs were not as exorbitant as they are today. I never remember thinking about the affordability of heating and cooling my homes as I bought them. But energy costs are rising rapidly, and it's foolish to think they will ever go down. We know people with large homes and multiple furnaces who have racked up heating bills of $900 per month in the winter. That's a bucket-load of money, folks.

At our GLGI meeting yesterday, we all decided that this is an issue we'd like to take on. Every once in a while you discover something that makes absolutely no sense, seems like a slam dunk, and so you have to go for it. Our first conclusion was that this is a matter for the Michigan legislature. So first, we're going to do a bit of research and see if other states allow prospective buyers to review utility bills. Then Tom Bradley has volunteered to contact his representative in Royal Oak to discuss the matter.

The implications of an overturn of this legislation are quite significant. If people were required to show their utility bills, they would be more inclined to weatherize their homes, and this would eventually make quite a dent in overall energy usage. After all, would you be willing to pay $900 a month for utilities if this were known to you up front?

Enjoying Michigan Winters

It's tradition in Michigan that this time of the year is prime time for complaining about the weather. As I move through my day, visiting the grocery store, dry cleaners, mall or vet, I hear the same thing repeated again and again. 'How are you doing?' I ask. 'OK, except for the [freezing, gloomy, snowy, icy...insert your own adjective here] weather. I don't think I can make it until spring...winter is so long!'. When I tell people that I actually like winter, I am regarded with suspicion. I'm not following the party line. Worst of all, though, is listening to the weather reports on TV, which hearken thoughts of the apocolypse whenever a snowfall is expected. So I gave up on TV weather long ago. Couldn't take the drama.

I'd like to suggest that our weather isn't all that bad, and perhaps we (shall I say it?) exaggerate a bit. Keep in mind that right now, early January, that days are actually getting longer. It is cold, but unless you don't have a home, I'm guessing most of us are adequately warm most of the time. And can I suggest you look at how other people around the world handle weather to gain some perspective? For example, I lived in Tokyo for a number of years, and they have a typhoon season that lasts from August through to mid-October. One day early in my stay I looked out my window and saw a green sky with high winds whipping the rain horizontally. I had to be somewhere for a meeting about 1/2 hour walk away, and since I had no car, as most people did not, I assumed the meeting was canceled (wimpy Michigan person that I am). When I called my Japanese friend to make sure my assumption was correct, I found that not only was the meeting on, but that she was a bit puzzled as to why I was even calling.

So there was a big lesson for me. Don't worry about the weather! Throughout my years in Tokyo, I walked everywhere (often in a dress and heels) in all weather conditions, and found that, surprise, it wasn't all that bad. I learned to bring along a handkerchief to sometimes wipe off my legs, kept an umbrella with me, and came to accept that my hair was going to have some bad days.

Another discovery was that being outside year-round did great things for my spirits. I recognized that in the USA I usually moved from cubicle (home) to cubicle (car) without fresh air intake, and perhaps this wasn't the best thing for me. So when we moved back, we began biking and walking more. Tom is still biking, even into January, for part of his commute downtown. And although I'm more of a 3-season biker, I have recently picked up a new form of exercise, swimming, that is also wonderful for lifting my spirits in a cold Michigan January. There's something about being in contact with the elements (fresh air or water) that must be a fundamental need of ours.

So, right now in the middle of a [can we try the word 'beautiful'?] Michigan winter, let's relax and enjoy each season our wonderful state has to offer. Our Tuesday group is going to be discussing various topics that are winter-related these coming weeks, and feel free to join us. We start next Tuesday with ice-removal and humidifiers, and will also tackle dressing for the weather, hibernation/need to sleep in winter (including food cravings), setting up a comfortable winter environment, seasonal cultural expectations, and inspirational reading.