These days with energy prices so high, many are turning to "Green" building in hopes of reducing our environmental footprint (and to ease the strain on our pocket books!). Today, homes with the "Green" label areone of the few hot trends in an otherwise morbid real estate industry and builders are jumping on board! This has given some builders a much-needed niche, but it's spurring others to apply the term with very little to back it up - a problem that is being termed "greenwashing" and it is spreading throughout the building industry like wildfire.
This has been a common complaint from both real estate professional and builders alike and advocates fear that the ever-more-widespread use of "green" confuses and misleads the public. "Some of these builders are putting that on as a tagline, when all they might be doing is putting in compact fluorescent light bulbs and Green Label carpet," says Drew Smith, a founding member of the Florida Green Building Coalition. So how do we as agents and consumers know if we are getting the real deal? The only real way for valid assurance seems to be an independent, third-party inspection that can verify what has been done will actually provide a green benefit.
There are sites that you can look at to further increase your "green" knowledge and soak your brain with the LEED for Homes, NAHB Model Green Home Building Guidelines, the SBIC Green Building Guidelines, and the ICC-NAHB National Green BUilding Standards, and you will begin to find common threads between the different programs. They are based off of project design, energy efficiency, water efficiency, construction best practices, renewable energy source, material selection, lot planning and site preparation, and indoor air quality and maintenance. There is a LOT more to it than energy efficient lights and recycled carpet!
Always remember, buyer beware! Just because it says green, doesn't mean it is!
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Thanks for the list of contacts -- am off to check them out. This is the future!
Li
Great Post Valorie,
I have homes listed with a builder, Chaffey Homes, and we are very proud of our efforts to be Green. Chaffey Homes has always tried to be a responsible builder. It feels good and it saves money when done well. I'm not trying to write a commercial here, but I do come from a company that walks the walk about being Green... One of the homes Chaffey Homes built is a Green Concept House that won a bunch of national Green Awards. Visit http://www.goinggreenatthebeach.com/ to learn more.
Sorry about the shameless plug, but as you pointed out, too many people and builders are Claiming Green rather than Being Green.
There are a lot of confusing things out there in trying to be Green. Some things are simple and are, in my opinion, the simple ones are the best place to start.
- Reducing the amount of garden space that requires watering is a huge one. Reduce or eliminate lawn areas for landscaping that requires less water. (trees & shrubs.. especially trees that shade the house in Summer)
- Flourescent Bulbs are good and easy.
- High Efficiency Furnaces (90+ percent) are better and save money... A Win-Win!
- Several good Green options are available for Water Heaters too.
- This one is a little (or a lot) more complicated because it involves emotions... Buy an appropriate house. That is to say buy a house that you will make full use of. If you don't use a Dining Room or a Guest Room more than a couple times a year, don't buy a house that has those things or whatever you won't actually use often... It is a waste of building materials and energy (to heat the unused space).
There are hundreds of things that can be good and Green, and many more that claim to be good that really aren't. The best thing I can say is try to think about what you're doing from a reasonable, responsible and practical perspective.
-Bill
Bill-
Chaffey builds a beautiful home! I'm glad you made reference to the footprint of the property because people forget that lawns = water. It's great when you can incorporate more of the native habitat. My family has a farm with some rolling fields that were planted with fescue grass (which is NOT native to the US). People don't know that fescue is actually poisonous to animals and it can cause miscarriages in horses (cows have so many stomachs it doesn't hurt them). They have recently eliminated the fescue naturally by repeatedly turning over the earth and planting over with native grasses which are more tolerant to Virginia's climate. The results are amazing as far as the new wildlife that has started coming into the fields! Even if your home isn't "Green" built, you can do things in and around the house that can still help the environment. Great reply!