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Green Built Homes |
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What is "Green?" "Going green" can mean different things. Many people think of green builders as doing something earthy and unusual like building the walls out of hay bales and mud. Although that too can fit the definition, a built green home need not look any different than the conventional home on the market today. "Better built" in most cases is compatible with the average lifestyle. The word green, within only a few years, has been overworked and exhausted. More accurately, the goal of the average home built green is meant to be energy efficient, environmentally friendly, and healthy. In addition to the confusion of what a green home looks like, there are also folks who mistakenly believe a green home will cost exorbitantly more. Not true in most cases. Of course, there is the opportunity to incorporate as many aspects of green building as possible and spend a great deal of money. But one need not do so in order to qualify for a certified, energy-efficient home. Standard green built homes can cost only 1%-5% more. An example below can show you what your "up front" expenses might be versus your payback period (which is the amount of time required before the savings resulting from your system equal the system cost).
(From Fannie Mae's Energy-Efficient Mortgage brochure.) What is Energy Star and an Energy Star Partner? Most people know the name Energy Star from the appliances that are sold in the local hardware store. Clothes washers, dishwashers, and refrigerators are some of the most common home appliances that are "Energy Star rated." Energy Star is a joint program of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Energy, whose goal it is to help people save money while simultaneously helping the environment. They have developed an entry-level program for builders, qualifying them under Energy Star's requirements and standards. Duke Brothers is an Energy Star Partner in the Triad and builds 100% Energy Star qualified homes. This means our homes are at least 30% more energy efficient than the average, comparable home. National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) Certified Green Professional™ Program Taken a step further, the NAHB has a program to certify builders in classifying "green" as a real, measurable product. Instead of greenwashing and merely adding the label to our homes, the NAHB allows builders to test our homes and use techniques that can actually quantify the extent to which we've incorporated green practices into our homes. NAHB standards are more strict and detailed than even Energy Star, and Duke Brothers has the first green built home in High Point, NC. According to the National Association of Home Builders' website: Green homes incorporate environmental considerations and resource efficiency into every step of the building and development process to minimize environmental impact. The design, construction, and operation of a home must focus on energy and water efficiency, resource efficient building design and materials, indoor environmental quality, and must take the home's overall impact on the environment into account. A great resource is the NAHB web page on the NAHB green program, which has only been in existence since February 2008. More specifically, they have information on what exactly goes into a green home and how a green house is rated on this page.
Existing Home Energy Efficiency Retrofitting The real estate market is tough right now and people are putting off plans to shop for homes. However, many people are renovating their homes to accommodate their changing lifestyle or to prepare their home for a more competitive market down the road. One way to market a home uniquely and save money is to get a home energy audit and retrofit it for Energy Star standards. Duke Brothers is qualified for a turn-key audit of existing homes and retrofit to make a home more energy efficient. This can include a home energy test, needs assessment, implementation, and retest. Ask us about a home energy audit today! EcoBrokerage "EcoBroker is a Building® America and Built Green® Colorado Education Partner; the most successful green-building program in the United States."* The EcoBroker designation for Realtors allows them to identify a high-performance home and direct buyers and sellers to professionals who are experts in various areas. For example, if a home is inspected and found to have radon, an EcoBroker can quickly access her stable of experts who can mitigate the problem. She can also recognize potential energy-savings in a home and refer her client to someone who can test the house for energy efficiency. Steve's wife, Lisa, has made a valuable contribution to the Duke Brothers fold by becoming designated as an EcoBroker. Not only can she more readily recognize a high-performance home, she can suggest some better built improvements to sellers, and knows the neighborhoods where Energy Star and Green homes exist.
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Steve Duke has been certified by the NAHB as a Certified Green Professional (CGP). He is also a member of the Triad Green Building Council.