Environmentally Friendly Home Features
There are so many environmentally friendly home features available today for homeowners to choose from. In this interview, Kim Dodge, Mortgage Consultant with Usher Financial Group talks to Josh Friberg, Real Estate Agent with Keller Williams. Josh believes that the home buying and selling decisions you make will have a big impact on your life and lifestyle. One big impact that your home has is it’s impact on the environment and it’s impact on the people who live in it. Josh is an Earth Advantage Broker, which means he is certified to help home buyers and sellers identify and market the “green” features that improve a home’s livability and value.
When it comes to marketing your home, an Earth Advantage Broker will be able to explain to buyers the upgrades that have been made and how this will save money with energy costs and the overall livability of the home. “If a seller has spent a whole lot of money improving their home and making it more livable, healthier, money smart and sustainable, I, as a marketer, need to be able to explain this to buyers” says Josh.
There are many Earth Friendly Certifications that a home owner can have. For example:
– Energy Star Certification – Federal Program
– Earth Advantage – Based in Oregon
– LEED Certification – Tends to be more in commercial and multi-family buildings
– Passive House Certification – Buildings that require little energy for space heating or cooling
Another term you hear a lot is “Energy Score”. The U.S. Department of Energy’s Home Energy Score provides information that helps you understand your home’s energy efficiency and how to improve it. The Home energy Score includes three parts:
1. The Score itself
2. Facts about your home
3. Recommended improvements to increase your Score and the energy efficiency of your home.