E2 THE NATION’S HOUSING
Some core changes in financial reform law are already in effect
harney from E1
Treasury Secretary Neal Wolin asked for understanding about creating an agency that must take over responsibility for consumer protection statutes that have been on the books for decades. “This will take some time,” he
said, “but it’s worth it.” Consumer advocates say they
get Wolin’s point but still expect the White House to move the new agency into functional shape fast. Travis Plunkett, legislative direc- tor for the Consumer Federation of America, said: “Yes, they need to do this right. But the sooner they can get the doors open, the sooner the public will feel the tangible benefits.” What sort of benefits might be- gin to flow once the bureau takes official form? One of the earliest — and most widely anticipated — changes in the real estate field will involve home appraisals. The law requires the agency to quick- ly come up with new interim rules on appraisal accuracy and independence designed to re- place the “Home Valuation Code of Conduct” imposed last year by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. That alone should bring relief to buyers, sellers, realty agents and builders who have com- plained about inept deal-break- ing appraisals fostered by the code. In a companion move, the reform law also sets standards for appraisal management compa- nies that function as third-party
vendors for many lenders, which have been criticized for assigning valuations to inexperienced ap- praisers who are unfamiliar with local conditions but are willing to work for low fees.
Another early tangible benefit:
a national hotline system that will allow aggrieved mortgage borrowers and others to lodge complaints and alert the bureau to unfair and deceptive practices. The new agency will also as- sume control of a consumer pro- tection statute, RESPA — the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act — which seeks to prevent under- the-table kickbacks and padded fees by lenders, title companies, realty agents and builders. Among the early projects ex-
pected from the bureau will be a rewriting and streamlining of home-purchase disclosures and a tie-in with a revised truth-in- lending disclosure, possibly all wrapped up in a single plain- language package.
Also high on the to-do list: rules requiring all loan officers to make good-faith verifications that mortgage applicants have the ability to repay the loans they seek. This may sound pretty ba- sic, but it was an alien concept in some mortgage companies dur- ing the heydays of the boom. Not only did they not worry about who could afford what, but there was also no federal watch- dog on the scene to make sure they did. Now there will be.
kenharney@earthlink.net
M1 M2 M3 M4 V1 V2 V3 V4
KLMNO SHAPING THE CITY Let there be light (carefully) in Metro stations by Roger K. Lewis Lately Metro has taken a lot of
heat because of persistent subway system deficiencies: lack of air conditioning in rail cars; escalator and elevator outages; and operator or equipment failures resulting in derailments and collisions — along with injuries and fatalities. Metro is attempting to rectify the system’s deficiencies, attributable in part to human fallibility but also to chronically inadequate financing. Yet there is one other long-standing deficiency that gets little attention but needs substantial improvement: lighting. At the moment, improving lighting is understandably of low priority because lighting has little effect on overall performance. And there is minimal funding for anything beyond light bulb replacement. But lighting inadequacies not only compromise the aesthetic quality of the system’s exceptional architecture, they also adversely affect visual acuity and comfort and, at certain places, customer safety. The Washington area is blessed with one of the world’s most aesthetically memorable subway systems, designed by the late Chicago-based architect Harry Weese, who also designed the District’s historic Arena Stage Theater. Metro stations are spanned by column-free, coffered vaults of reinforced concrete, recalling monumental edifices of
simply too dark. Insufficient foot candle levels in such places make it difficult for riders waiting for trains to read graphics and text on platform pylons, not to mention newspapers and books. Below mezzanines, one must stand directly under a recessed downlight to read anything. And platform spaces beneath escalators and stairs leading to mezzanines can feel especially ominous, a bit like lightless alleys where “lurking” comes to mind. Escalators and landings,
ROGER K. LEWIS
ancient Rome and the fanciful 18th-century etchings of Giovanni Battista Piranesi. Seen regularly in subway scenes of movies set in the nation’s capital, the subtly lighted, vaulted stations are by far Weese’s most elegant and emblematic architectural contribution to Metro.
Lighting is a key element of
Metro station architecture. The principal strategy was to conceal light sources and illuminate vaults and station spaces indirectly. Shielded lights running along the bottom edge of each vault vertically project light that subtly bathes the arching gridwork of ribs and recesses. Attenuated interplay of soft, reflected light and crisp shadows across vaults is ethereal, making the concrete structure appear delicate and almost weightless. Through lighting, the Weese
How much home can I comfortably afford?
Find the answers at:
bankofamerica.com/myhome or call 1.866.659.3742.
Bank of America, N.A., Member FDIC. Equal Housing Lender. Credit and collateral are subject to approval. Terms and conditions apply. This is not a commitment to lend. Programs, rates, terms and conditions are subject to change without notice. © 2010 Bank of America Corporation. ARHOU352
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25 year 360 pmts 300 pmts 20 year 240 pmts 15 year 10 year 180 pmts 120 pmts Rate Pmt Rate Pmt Rate Pmt Rate Pmt Rate Pmt
4.375 $874 4.375 $960 4.250 $1,084 3.750 $1,273 3.625 $1,741 4.500 $887 4.500 $973 4.375 $1,095 3.875 $1,284 3.750 $1,751 4.625 $900 4.625 $985 4.500 $1,107 4.000 $1,294 3.875 $1,761 4.750 $913 4.750 $998 4.625 $1,119 4.125 $1,305 4.000 $1,772 4.875 $926 4.875 $1,010 4.750 $1,131 4.250 $1,316 4.125 $1,782 5.000 $939 5.000 $1,023 4.875 $1,143 4.375 $1,328 4.250 $1,793 5.125 $953 5.125 $1,036 5.000 $1,155 4.500 $1,339 4.375 $1,803 5.250 $966 5.250 $1,049 5.125 $1,167 4.625 $1,350 4.500 $1,814 5.375 $980 5.375 $1,062 5.250 $1,179 4.750 $1,361 4.625 $1,824 5.500 $994 5.500 $1,075 5.375 $1,191 4.875 $1,373 4.750 $1,835
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3.500* 3.545 0.000 30 ASK THE BUILDER Are garage-door openers worth it? By Tim Carter
DEAR TIM: The house I moved into doesn’t have a garage-door opener. I’m wondering whether these devices are really necessary. Also, the price differences between models have me seriously considering a discount opener. What should I take into account when purchasing one? — Samantha R., Providence, R.I. DEAR SAMANTHA: Over the years, I have also installed many different garage-door openers in the houses I built and remodeled. I’ll say this: I’ll never, ever install a cheap model. They don’t last very long, and you’ll end up replacing the opener long before you would have if you’d invested in quality. If your goal is to save money, watch for a sale or special promotion. Let’s talk about how useful these devices are by conjuring up a few scenarios. Imagine you’re going out to a formal party and you’re in your finest clothes. Just as you’re getting ready to pull out of your garage, a torrential rainstorm erupts. If you’ve got a garage-door opener, you don’t have to jump out into the rain to struggle with the door. If you decide to purchase a
garage-door opener, you should understand how one works. An opener typically has one of three types of drive mechanism: a chain drive, a screw drive or a belt drive. Each does the same thing, but there are significant differences. Chain drives usually
design team succeeded in creating a theater-like ambience verging at times on mystery. Gray-shaded areas contrast with occasional spots of intense brightness. Walking or standing on mezzanines and platforms, travelers experience feelings of being at once in an intimate and a communal space. To augment illumination of
vaults high overhead, some of the Metro-brown, triangular pylons standing on station platforms and mezzanines contain concealed floodlights that throw light upward. By contrast, floodlamps recessed in the low, flat ceilings of mezzanines provide illumination for spatially compressed platform areas below mezzanines. Unfortunately, this strategy of
aesthetically appealing lighting has produced too many places within Metro stations that are
stairways and turnstile areas also can be too dimly illuminated. Even the station names affixed at regular intervals to the sides of vaults are sometimes hard to read because the lighting is too subtle. In the interest of full disclosure, a few years ago I was a consultant helping Metro conduct a lighting design study. I quickly realized that introducing new lighting within stations would be difficult, and not just because of cost. The primary challenge is to preserve the essence of the original lighting concept and aesthetic character of stations, which could be easily undermined by inappropriate lighting retrofits. The form and structure of stations offer few places to install effective new light sources. Thus, if and when Metro is able to mobilize resources to deal with the subway system’s lighting problems, sensitive and creative design intervention will be needed. Otherwise, one of the most vital aspects of Weese’s extraordinary architectural legacy could be in jeopardy.
rogershome@aol.com
Roger K. Lewis is a practicing architect and a professor emeritus of architecture at the University of Maryland.
SATURDAY, JULY 31, 2010
TIM CARTER If you decide to purchase a garage-door opener, don’t be cheap.
are the noisiest, and over time the chains can lose a little bit of their tension. Screw-drive openers, in my experience, operate smoothly for years with little or no maintenance issues. Belt-drive openers require
close attention if you want them to be quiet. Because the belt minimizes metal-to-metal contact between moving parts, you end up with a nearly silent opener. This can be a significant advantage if you or another family member sleeps in a room above or adjacent to the garage, or if someone in your family works odd hours. You should consider service options when deciding which garage-door opener to buy. Although these machines are not too complicated, you don’t want
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to be up on a ladder yourself trying to wrestle with one if you don’t have to. Understand that the electric opener you intend to purchase is not built to lift, on its own, the enormous weight of a garage door. The lifting is done by springs attached to your door. Make sure those springs have been adjusted correctly before you install an opener. If you have the chance to install the necessary wiring for the opener before walls of your garage are finished, do so. Safety features on the doors require low-voltage wires to be run to optical sensors at the lower ends of the door track. It’s nice to have these wires hidden behind the walls, where they can’t be snagged by garden tools or anything else that might nick them.
Tim Carter is a columnist for Tribune Media Services. He can be contacted through his Web site, www.
askthebuilder.com.
Alarm not included
Don’t assume that a door opener will make your garage immune from unwanted entry in your absence. Just about every garage-door opener is equipped with a safety release handle where the door connects to the track. When your door is in the closed position, this handle dangles from the track just behind the top of the door. An undesirable person can easily slide a metal hook in the top of some garage doors and grab the handle. Within seconds, they can disengage the garage door from the track, which allows them to manually lift the door. Once inside your garage, they can quickly close the door, giving the appearance to all who pass by your home that all is well and nothing is happening.
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