What to look for in a green home

The following is a guest article by blog reader, Misty Weaver.  Misty Weaver is a partner with 5 Elements Design, a residential design firm that provides stock house plans and custom small house plans that are sustainable and family friendly.

Green, eco friendly, sustainable housing is all over the news right now for various reasons, but if you are just beginning a home search with your Realtor, you may not know what to look for. While there are homes that are rated "Green" or certified LEED by independent parties, there may not be many in your area. Looking for green features or opportunities to make small changes to a home to make it more eco friendly may be the easiest option. You can find a home with green features that will lower your energy costs, increase your indoor air quality, and continue to increase the value of your home long after you sign on the dotted line by looking for these green features.

Location and Siting of the Home – Look for a home that has southern facing windows for passive heating during the winter. If properly designed, a southern facing home will allow the sun’s energy to heat the home during the cooler months, while providing cooling features and shade with the use of trees or extended overhangs to block the sun when it’s higher in the sky during the summer. Taking advantage of the natural energy of the sun will help lower your heating and cooling bills with virtually no monetary investment.

If you are buying a home in or near a large city that offers mass public transportation, living near a transit station will not only help lower air pollution and possibly save you the cost of having a car, you could also qualify for lower insurance rates.

Insulation – Insulation helps a home retain indoor air temperature by not allowing the air inside the home to get out, or the air outside the home to get in. Insulation comes with an R value that indicates how strongly it will maintain the temperature in your home. 
The higher the R value, the lower your utility bills. Compare insulation values of the homes you are considering, and if needed, consider how much it will cost to add insulation.

Windows – Energy rated windows will help control air and heat transfer in much the same way as traditional insulation. Larger windows also help reduce the amount of time you need to use electric lighting throughout the day, thus lowering your energy bill further. 
Older homes often have windows that are no longer properly sealed. 
Newer windows offer more energy savings, and double hung windows allow for more natural ventilation to lower cooling bills during the warmer months.

Flooring, Cabinetry, Wall Coverings – Looking for a home that includes eco friendly flooring, cabinetry and countertops may take awhile. Wood floors made from FSC lumber, tile, cork, or even cement are all green options, but if you are buying an older home and want to make it more sustainable it may not make sense to rip out old carpet or linoleum if they are in good shape as you are just sending these materials to the landfill. Cabinets, countertops, and fixtures from a bath or kitchen can be donated or recylced through non-profits such as Green Demolitions if you must remodel. Even CraigsList.org is a great alternative for giving away or selling unwanted interior products so they are used somewhere else instead of sitting in a landfill. Low VOC paints can be used to cut down on air toxins if the home has traditional paint currently, at very little cost.

Water – Tankless water heaters are a great green find in a home as they provide hot water on demand rather than heating water continually in a tank that loses the heat to the surrounding air. Rain catching systems that collect rainwater from the gutters for watering the garden and lawn are also green features you should look for, or find ways to implement in a new home purchase. High efficiency toilets or dual flush toilets cut down on the amount of water used throughout the day by two-thirds, and gray water systems can help even further by reusing water from the laundry, shower and sinks for flushing the toilet.

Appliances – Energy Star rated appliances can significantly lower utility bills. If you are looking at an older home that has many green features but the appliances need updated, there are currently rebates available for recycling old appliances if they are replaced with energy efficient models.

Landscaping – Natural landscaping can significantly cut down on water usage, so look for a home that has native plants that need minimal water and fertilizer. Natural plants are often better at preventing run off and erosion which will help protect your property as well. If you plan on building or need to redo your landscape, try to minimize grass areas, and consider a rain garden.

Working with your Realtor to find an existing green home, or the perfect lot to build a new eco friendly home, will go a lot smoother if you understand what to look for and what you must have.  Understanding the costs for adding green features versus how much you will save in energy bills, will also help you make choices. Finally, don’t forget about tax benefits for going green, and local Energy Alliances that may help defer or even cover the costs of making improvements.