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Thinking Long TermWhen you're shopping for a house, you're probably looking for the right location, with a price range in mind, for an exciting floor plan and interior. But of those three big issues, there are some angles about price which aren't as cut and dried as you might think. The old adage "you get what you pay for" is very often true, in both the positive and negative sense of the phrase.Say you've owned your present home for seven years. By now, the mortgage payment doesn't seem as big a factor as it did when you bought the home. Are there some things about it that you wish had been done better from the get-go? Is the brass coating already coming off the brass-coated faucet? Does it seem to take forever for the furnace to heat your home on a cold winter's evening? Do you have to treat your redwood deck every summer? Bringing a long-term view to your house shopping process means more than stretching your pennies. The items below are just a few examples of how better quality doesn't necessarily cost more in the long run. None of them are revolutionary or cutting-edge ideas, products or concepts. They just make good common sense. Cost of a comfort detailWhat added price would improved comfort be worth to the buyer of a new home that turns out to be a "Goldilocks?" What's a Goldilocks home? It's a three-level house that, on a hot summer day with the air conditioning on, is too hot upstairs, too cold in the basement, and just right on the main floor. In one such home I recently tested, the reason for this discrepancy in comfort was leaky ductwork in the basement. That means a lot of wasted cold air down there in summer, plus a lot of wasted warm air in winter. And that can mean bigger comfort problems in bedrooms above a garage, where it might be even warmer in summer and colder in winter. A big part of the solution is to specify that your builder properly seal the ductwork with a pasty material called mastic. It should cost the buyer of a 2,000 square-foot home up to $200 extra. This type of detail isn't an eye-catcher. It's the kind of minor quality feature that you only see out of the corner of your eye, yet it can make a big difference in your level of comfort. Cost of ownership vs. initial priceHow could you buy house #1 for $152,000 and have it cost you the same to own as house #2 which has a lower price tag of $150,000? Answer: when the $2,000 difference buys additional energy features in house #1. In house #1, your builder insulates the basement walls - a feature not present in house #2. He installs a moderately more efficient water heater. And he selects window glass with a lowemissivity coating; this low-e coating improves indoor comfort, reduces fading of carpets and fabrics, saves energy and reduces the chances of condensa tion on windows. Yes, the mortgage payment for house #1 is slightly higher, but an E-Star rating by Energy Rated Homes of Colorado (ERHC) would show that lower energy bills in #1 would offset the higher monthly mortgage payments. If priced at $2,000, this package of energy upgrades pay you back as long as you own the home. Lower MaintenanceDo the wood windows in your old house need painting? Have you treated your redwood deck yet? Unless you're as clever at getting free help as Tom Sawyer was, you can't put these chores off forever, unless... Unless, next time around, you buy a new home with windows which don't need painting. If your budget allows, clad exterior windows cost another 10 percent over standard wood model lines. On a tighter budget, look for vinyl windows - they never need painting and are just as energy-efficient as wood windows. As for the deck, green-building consultant David Johnston (What's Working, Boulder) recommends using a plastic-wood composite. They come in several wood-like colors, don't require annual maintenance, should outlast the redwood deck it replaces by several wood lifetimes and cost about the same as redwood. And if you don't want to ever paint siding again, talk to your builder about James Hardy fiber-cement concrete siding. Johnston reports that, thanks to a price war, it costs less today than hardboard siding. Environmental benefitsIf you seek out a green-built home, you'll contribute to an increased use of and demand for recycled materials in buildings. In addition, any green-built home is also energy efficient. When you purchase an E-Star certified energy-efficient home, there are direct environmental benefits which shouldn't be overlooked. A home which uses less energy for heating, water heating, cooling, lights and appliances will reduce the volume of air pollution emitted by the home (or by a remote power plant). An ERHC E-Star rating quantifies the amount of air emissions avoided by the efficient home. Long term, perhaps within a decade, it's possible that reductions in air emissions may also translate into even greater dollar savings. The reason: pressure is being applied on the U.S. by a number of countries, especially Germany, England and the Scandinavian countries, to increase taxes on fossil fuels because of the carbon dioxide emitted when they are burned. Since most homes built today should still be standing 100 years from now, the benefits of your resource-efficient buying decision should have a long-term beneficial impact. Higher resale valueOver time, homes increase in value. But some new homes which started out at the same price increase in value faster than others. During the last two years, a growing number of lenders, Realtors, and appraisers started the process of quantifying increased value for homes with higher energy features. The E-Star rating is the approved tool they use to quantify the added value which energy efficiency provides. Over the past decade, energy efficiency has not been a critical factor in resales. Ten years from now, the odds are pretty good that energy prices will be more of a factor than they are today. Should that happen, your more energy- and resource-efficient home could pay off handsomely when you sell it, whether you've bought the parade home with the highest energy rating or an entry-level home with a high E-Star energy rating. Steve Andrews consults with builders for E-Star Colorado and writes on energy issues (sbandrews@att.net). E-Star (www.e-star.com), is a nonprofit home energy rating system that works with both new and existing homes statewide. |
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2008 Built Green Colorado
Home Builders Association of Metro Denver, 9033 E. Easter Place, Suite 200,
Centennial, CO 80112 Last Updated: 10/05/2007 |