 Prepare to be Rated!
More and more cities, counties and states are making a home energy rating mandatory. There is talk of a national mandate on the horizon. President Obama's Energy Task Force has looked very closely at the number of RESNET HERS Raters (over 5,000 in 2007) to see if an infrastructure exists that could handle a national mandatory home rating.
Some of what's going on out there is...
Effective January 1, 2008 all new residential single family units built within the City of Santa Fe are required to post confirmed Home Energy Rating System (HERS) rating (Ordinance 2007-38).
This January 1, 2009 a home energy audit will be required to be conducted in conjunction with a home inspection when selling a home in Montgomery County Maryland. Bill 31-07 was passed in April 2008 by the Montgomery County Council.
Oregon’s governor, Ted Kulongoski, wants to require any owner selling or renting a home or commercial building in the state to obtain a certificate disclosing the property’s energy use and greenhouse gas emissions. The mandate, part of his climate change agenda for 2009, would take effect in 2011 for new and existing homes and in 2012 for commercial buildings
 The rest of the world is a little ahead of the U.S. The European Union’s commitment to fighting global warming has meant a growing trend in European countries of incorporating energy audits and ratings as part of the home sales process. Relative to other options, boosting buildings efficiency standards is usually the most attractive economic and political option to policymakers because of the large piece of the energy pie that buildings take up. (In the EU, buildings account for 40% of energy consumption[ about 38% in the U.S.A.]) As part of the European Union’s Directive on The Energy Performance of Buildings, all member countries are expected to have energy performance certificates available as part of a required information packet when a new home is sold or leased. The directive went into full effect in January 2009.
 Here at home this sticker to be placed on the breaker panel of homes across America has been approved by RESNET. Soon all consumers will be looking for these labels to check on the energy efficiency of their possible purchase.
For more information on what an Energy Rating is visit: www.resnet.us
 ANSI APPROVES NAHB's
NATIONAL GREEN BUILDING STANDARD™
WASHINGTON, Jan. 29 --The National Green Building Standard™ for all residential
construction work including single-family homes, apartments and condos, land development
and remodeling and renovation was approved today by the American National Standards
Institute (ANSI).
The approval signals a new era for the nation’s builders, remodelers and developers and also
provides an extra measure of reassurance for home buyers, said Joe Robson, a home builder
in Tulsa, Okla., and Chairman of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB).
“The National Green Building Standard is now the first and only green building rating system
approved by ANSI, making it the benchmark for green homes,” said Ron Jones, who chaired
the consensus committee charged with developing the standard.
“The standard provides home builders and remodelers with a much more expansive third-party
rating system that they can use to achieve green certification under NAHBGreen and the
National Green Building Certification Program,” said Mike Luzier, CEO of the NAHB Research
Center."
 Fine Homebuilding.com
Applauds RESNET’s HERS Index
On a scale of 0 to 100, a home must achieve a “Home Energy Rating” of 85 to be labeled Energy Star. The DOE Building Challenge encourages builders to shoot for 70. Other groups like the AIA’s www.Architecture2030.com call for scores of 65. (In England they are shooting for carbon neutral and zero energy homes by 2016!).
Print this article in the link as a handout for customers and a handy resource to keep in the office www.taunton.com
Under Slab Insulation
Is slab insulation necessary and if so how, where and how much? Heat loss from the slab in a basement can cost the building owner $40 to $200 (in 2000 dollars) per year.
If you insulate your slab with an R-5 rigid foam board you could improve your HERS Index up to 5 points. If you are building a LEED house remember that the lower your HERS Index the more points you receive for your score. An index of 80 receives 4 points and an index of 40 receives 25 points.
No Money Down Mortgages Really do Exist!
The USDA offers mortgages of up to 102% of the loan for suburban homes in low-density areas. The catch? The buyer’s income cannot exceed 115% of the median income and the home is usually in a town under 25,000 population. In the December 16th issue of the Wall Street Journal there was an article about a buyer in Raleigh, North Carolina used a USDA rural mortgage to build a $225,000 custom home. The article also mentioned D.R. Horton used the USDA mortgages to sell suburban properties in subdivisions. For information, go to Google and type the name of your state along with and the search terms “USDA” and “mortgage.”
Energy Efficient Mortgages
These offer a reduced rate on new construction and even funds to remodel existing homes purchased. For veterans, the VA Energy Efficient Mortgage caps the improvements at $6,000 on existing homes. Find money for your buyers.
For example, take home #1 with an average monthly energy bill of $300 as compared to home #2 with a $400 average monthly energy bill. Home #1 could qualify for an additional $100 in monthly mortgage payments - an additional equivalent of about $20,000 in home value because of lower energy consumption. In the meantime these energy consumption comparisons compare future expenses to occupy the home. It’s the same as comparing cars' MPG ratings when considering the purchase of a new car.
For more information go to: www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?c=bldrs_lenders_raters.energy_efficient_mortgage
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PRESIDENT'S CORNER
Kelly Parker, P.E. President: GWS |
Where are You at?
In the Great Scheme of Home Building energy efficiency as the new paradigm has arrived. Mandatory Energy Ratings for all new and existing homes at time of sale are on their way. Energy Efficiency IS the hot issue for most consumers looking to buy a home.
A recent report by Texas Comptroller Susan Combs says significant energy savings are possible if consumers are armed with credible, understandable energy efficiency information when buying a home or considering home energy upgrades.
So, where are you in the great scheme of things? Energy Efficient Building is the only good course of action for the future. We at GWS strongly urge all home builders to educate themselves on the various Green programs available like LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design), NAHB's National Green Building Standard™ , the Department of Energy's Builder Challenge and, of course, RESNET's HERS INDEX which is becoming the national standard for home rating.
For more information on any of these programs please contact us at 888-488-0206 or visit our web site
Kelly Parker, P.E.
President, Guaranteed Watt Saver, Inc.
GWS is happy to announce our New
Streamlined Process for Raters!
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All of the previous e-mail addresses have been condensed into one easy contact through our new Rater Liaison, Michaela Ahmad.
Send all inquiries and files to ratersupport@gwssi.com including:
- REMRate Files
- Sticker/Tax Requests
- Plans
- Continuing Education Credits
- And any questions you might have
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"Thank you for choosing us as your provider. We appreciate you as our Rater and wish to
make your GWS experience as rewarding and profitable as it can be." - Michaela Ahmad
$10 OFF ANY ENERGY AUDIT!
from
Mention this ad when you call to schedule a Home Energy Audit and you'll receive $10 OFF either a Level 1 or Level 2 audit. To schedule call us at 888-488-0206 or for more information visit our web site at: www.myecompass.com
March 13-14, 2009, Phoenix, AZ
The greening of business, development, government and consumer products is at an all time high and growing exponentially. Rising energy costs, new laws, and growing demand for environmentally friendly consumer products continue to drive the green marketplace.
The Southwest Build-It-Green Expo & Conference is Arizona’s largest green conference with over 500 anticipated exhibitors. The Build-It-Green Expo showcases sustainable products and services impacting every area of life.
For more information go to: azbigmedia.com/content/southwest-build-it-green-expo-conference
Houses That Work
March 13, 2009, Indianapolis, IN
As part of the partnership between EEBA and RESNET, the first three RESNET members to sign up for each session can attend for free!! To register for this session, please call Nancy or Dona at EEBA: 952.881.1098 and verify your membership.
For more information go to: www.eeba.org/housesthatwork/workshops/Indianapolis.asp
May 8-10, 2009, Dallas, TX
Get contacts, tools and ideas that are good for both the environment and your bottom line. The NAHB National Green Building Conference is the only national conference targeted to green building for the mainstream residential building industry. Network with designers and suppliers, attend exceptional education sessions and develop the skills you need for profitable green building.
For more information go to: www.nahb.org/conference
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