Shea Homes is bringing baby boomers the netzero concept. The home builder claims to the first in the nation to offer homes that produce as much electricity as they consume and are calling it the “SheaXero: The No Electric Bill Home.” The homes will feature energy efficient cooling and heating systems, appliances, insulation, dual-pane windows, and solar panel systems provided by San Mateo-based SolarCity. SheaXero homes are available at the company’s 10 Trilogy communities in Arizona, California, Florida, Nevada and Washington including one in Brentwood in the East Bay and in Rio Vista near the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta...

Clergy from several denominations held an Ash Wednesday protest this morning calling on Wells Fargo to freeze all mortgages until an investigation is completed after a San Francisco audit found several foreclosures in the city were done under questionable, if not illegal, circumstances. Click the photo to start a slideshow of protest images. The clergy also called on Wells Fargo to write down principal on underwater mortgages, which are those loans in which balances now exceed the value of the house...

The apartment vacancy rate fell in five of six Colorado major metro areas in the fourth quarter, for a combined vacancy rate of 5.6 percent, according to the state Division of Housing. That 5.6 percent rate was down from the 5.8 percent rate at the end of 2010. It was the lowest fourth-quarter statewide vacancy rate since the division began measuring it in 2007. Denver’s Q4 2011 vacancy rate, detailed in an earlier report, fell to 5.4 percent — the lowest fourth-quarter level in 12 years. Greeley was the only city to report a year-over-year increase in vacancy rate, from 5...

A seventh person has pleaded guilty in a mortgage fraud scheme at the Cloud 9 Sky Flats condo development in Minnetonka. The Star Tribune reports that John Halvor Ketcham, 50, of Eden Prairie, pleaded guilty Tuesday to one count of fraud. Federal prosecutors said Ketcham lied to lenders and received kickbacks of more than ,000 for his help in the scheme. The government said more than 3,000 was lost on five properties involving Ketcham. He faces up to five years in prison and will be sentenced at a later date...

January home sales in Central Ohio reached their highest level since 2008 as more than 1,100 homes sold in the first month of the year. The 1,125 homes sold last month represented a 6 percent increase over the same time period a year ago, the Columbus Board of Realtors said. Another 1,845 homes went into contract in January, 40 percent more than in January 2011. “Sales last month were at the same level as we experienced just prior to the housing boom,” Board President Jim Coridan said in a release...

Housing sales improved in January, with the number of existing home sales rising 4.3 percent from December, the third time in four months existing home sales rose, according to the National Association of Realtors. The Washington-based trade group says sales of existing homes were up 0.7 percent from a year ago, while inventory, or the number of homes listed for sale, was down 20.6 percent from January 2011. "The uptrend in home sales is in line with all of the underlying fundamentals - pent-up household formation, record-low mortgage interest rates, bargain home prices, sustained job creation and rising rents," said NAR chief...

Vail Resorts Inc. agreed to buy Kirkwood Mountain Resort for million. Effective immediately, pass holders from Heavenly Ski Resort and Northstar California will be able to ski at Kirkwood, and vice versa. Kirkwood is about 35 miles south of South Lake Tahoe. The deal also includes land zoned for both residential and commercial development around the base of the resort, although the seller will keep some of the land in the area and will also keep a “participation interest” in the other parcels...

Toll Brothers Inc. recorded a loss for its fiscal first-quarter but saw an increase in the number of people who signed contracts to buy one of its houses. The Horsham, Pa., company had a first-quarter net loss of .8 million, or 2 cents per diluted share, compared with income of .4 million, or 2 cents per diluted during the same period a year ago. Before taxes, Toll Brothers (NYSE:TOL) narrowed its losses, which were .4 million compared to million for the same period a year ago. Its fiscal first quarter ended Jan...

An Archstone-sponsored partnership has acquired a 192-unit apartment community in Sunnyvale called Parkside Apartment Homes. The complex is expected to be renamed Archstone Sunnyvale. The acquisition price was .2 million. The deal, announced Wednesday, was brokered by Phil Salimbeni and Stan Jones of Marcus & Millichap of Palo Alto. The property is located at the corner of North Wolfe Road and Stewart Drive. Archstone specializes in apartment investment and operations. Click here to read the press release from Archstone...

Home sales in the Dayton area are on the rise, according to figures released by the Dayton Area Board of Realtors Multiple Listing Service. In six of the past seven months, including January, sales have increased year-over-year. The 577 local home and condo sales in January rose 4 percent from January 2011 and its 554 sales, according to DABR. The increase in monthly sales, however, did not translate into a higher median sale price and average sale price, which fell below year-ago levels. The median sale price fell to ,000, down 3...