Imagine you had some great products to sell. They were the best available in terms of value and longevity. They helped protect people’s health and improved their quality of life. They were so good that the people who actually found out about them agreed to buy as many as you could make for the price you were asking. Sounds like a great scenario right?
Now add one little twist. The sales could not go through without the agreement of a third party who, unfortunately, did not understand the value of your product. They had simply not been trained to value the features that made your products so desirable. Your customers went away frustrated. You lost sales – perhaps even your business.
Green Home Market Needs Education
Unfortunately, this describes the market for green homes in the U.S. over the last several years. Some major builders have had a very difficult time closing on new, high-performance homes because of one thing: A lack of education about the true value of their products.
Customers had found these green homes, liked them and were ready to buy. The appraisal / lending process did not recognize the value of super-efficient building practices, solar power, healthy indoor air quality, high-efficiency lighting and appliances, and low energy bills. The end result was unfortunate for the builders, the potential homeowners and the greater community.
The issue goes even deeper. The entire industry has some catching-up to do. Smart, progressive builders need equally smart realtors, appraisers, underwriters and others in the financial process, because each plays a role in acknowledging the true value of a home. Only then will savvy home buyers have the choices they are demanding in ever-increasing numbers.
Enter Annette Bubak. She is the powerhouse at the helm of the Green Alliance and has done more to promote Energy Star homes in Southern Nevada than anyone I know. We have the highest market penetration of Energy Star homes in the country thanks in large part to her efforts. She believes that education is the key and fortunately for the rest of us, puts her belief into practice. Events like GREENFest and previous high-quality training events for realtors and appraisers would not have happened without her.
High Performance Home Symposium
The really good news is that Southern Nevada’s real estate professionals have another opportunity to take it to the next level on Wednesday, March 13, 2013 by attending the High Performance Home Symposium. This full day event will feature key speakers and presentations on topics such as: the value of being a GREEN Designated Realtor; the latest trends in high-performance homes along with financing tools and appraisal techniques; greening the Multiple Listing Service (MLS); marketing green homes; and the latest information on rebate and incentive programs.
This is a premier event for real estate professionals, appraisers and anyone else involved in building, selling or financing homes. Produced by the Green Alliance and the Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors (GLVAR) Green Committee, the event is open to all. GLVAR members get a small discount but the full price for an entire day of valuable education is only $30 so there is no reason to miss it. NV Energy is even sponsoring the first 100 registrants. You can call Annette Bubak at 702-400-2428 to register or you can download the High Performance Home Symposium Flyer (PDF).
If you are simply a mere homeowner, I’ll bet you know at least one realtor, appraiser, lender or home builder who would love to know about this event. Help spread the word as we accelerate the market for green, healthy, efficient homes in Nevada.
Green Tech Festival at CSN
Also, I want to make sure you know about the 3rd Annual Green Tech Festival at CSN (West Charleston campus) on Saturday, March 2nd, 2013. The full day event will include speakers and vendors at the forefront of the green movement. Guest speakers include Rob Mrowka of the Center for Biological Diversity and Launce Rake, long-time environmental advocate and reporter extraordinaire. I will be part of the Greening Homes panel at 11 AM. Visit our Green Calendar for more information, including a link to register for a free lunch.
Green Tech Festival: CSN map (park in the southeast part of the lot near building K (PDF)
Paul Bordenkircher
Just found your site and really love it. Here’s my question. I want to move toward a greener lifestyle, especially want to incorporate solar. But since I am renting a house, I’m concerned there’s little I can do without installing things on a house I don’t own. Any ideas?
Steve Rypka
That’s an excellent question Paul. Rather than go into detail here, I’m going to write a column on the topic. Briefly though, there are many things you can do that make a huge difference. You can purchase clean energy via a trading mechanism called a Renewable Energy Credit (REC), usually in the form of wind power. For example, Renewable Choice Energy offers wind power RECs for homeowners that are third-party certified by Green-e (very important).
You may already be doing these, but just for the record, we can also make efficient choices when it comes to food (eat lower on the food chain – less meat or even vegan), transportation (walk and bike more, drive a hybrid or EV), and consume less overall (reduce, reuse, recycle).
Our reproductive choices also have a huge impact on the environment and is the driving force behind the Center for Biological Diversity’s Endangered Species Condoms project. Every choice we make is important at this crucial time.