ANSI Approves Next Generation of the ICC 700 National Green Building Standard

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Liz Thompson

202-266-8495

ethompson@nahb.org


www.nahb.org

ANSI Approves Next Generation of the ICC 700 National Green Building Standard

Notable Changes Impact Energy Requirements and Scoring of Remodeling Projects

WASHINGTON, Jan. 11--The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) and the International Code Council (ICC) applaud the recent approval of the 2012 ICC 700 National Green Building Standard[tm].

In 2007, NAHB and the ICC partnered to establish a nationally-recognizable standard definition of green building. The resulting ICC 700 National Green Building Standard is the first and only residential green building rating system to undergo the full consensus process and receive approval from the American National Standards Institute (ANSI). This is the first time the standard has undergone Consensus Committee review and update since it was published in 2009.

"The introduction of the 2012 National Green Building Standard is a huge deal for our industry," said NAHB Chairman Barry Rutenberg, a home builder from Gainesville, Fla. "Not only does the updated version raise the bar on energy efficiency requirements, but it also completely revolutionizes how renovations and remodeling projects are treated under the standard. The 2012 updates make the standard easier to understand and implement, and we expect that this will certainly help to build upon the momentum we are already seeing in green building across the residential building industry."

To date, the standard has been widely implemented throughout the industry. The NAHB Research Center, which serves as the secretariat of the standard as it progresses through ANSI, has certified the compliance of thousands of dwelling units and developed lots to the ICC 700. Dozens of regional and local green initiatives refer to the standard within their program criteria and the International Green Construction Code (IgCC) requires compliance with the ICC 700 if a jurisdiction chooses to regulate residential buildings four stories or less in height.

"ANSI's approval of the 2012 ICC 700 National Green Building Standard reinforces the quality and transparency of the process used to develop this important standard for constructing green residential buildings across America," said International Code Council Board President Ronald Piester and CEO Dominic Sims in a joint statement. "We are proud to develop the codes and standards that ICC and NAHB Members use to guide the construction of safe, sustainable and affordable homes, and provide an opportunity for ICC Members to play a vital role in this important undertaking."

The new version of the standard includes several important changes including:

· Energy Code Update: While the original ICC 700 used the 2006 version of the International Energy Conservation Code (IECC) as a basis, the new version will use the 2009 IECC. The requirements of the 2009 IECC are estimated to result in energy efficient performance that is about 15 percent higher than the previous 2006 code.

· Restructured Scoring for Remodeling: The new version completely revamped the scoring for renovations and remodeling projects. The revised standard includes two entirely new chapters devoted to existing building projects. The first provides criteria for entire buildings and includes requirements for improved energy and water efficiency that increases as higher levels of compliance are sought. The second provides a green protocol for the most common renovation and addition projects that focus on functional areas of a home such as a kitchen, bathroom, basement, or addition under 400 square feet.

· Incentives for Development and Lot Design: The 2012 ICC 700 includes the addition of a new scoring opportunity for those choosing the build lots in green communities. In the new version, six points can be earned in the Lot Design, Preparation and Development chapter for choosing lots in developments that have been certified to ICC 700 or an equivalent program. In the previous version of the standard no such incentives were provided.

On Wednesday, Jan. 23, "Green Day" at the International Builders' Show in Las Vegas, NAHB and the ICC will release additional information on what changes the 2012 standard entails. Attendees of the show can hear the details during a press conference at 9:30 a.m. that day.

The standard will be available for order on January 23 at www.BuilderBooks.com.

For more information on the 2012 ICC 700 National Green Building Standard, please visit www.nahb.org/nahbgreen.

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Emerald Certification Awarded to Advanced Insulation

A new, highly energy-efficient home built by Advanced Insulation Systems of Traverse City has received Emerald Certification, the highest possible green building standard created by the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB).  The home is only one of three in Michigan to achieve this level of certification to date.

The Advanced Insulation home which was featured in this past summer’s Parade of Homes is 54% more efficient than is required by current building code.  The annual heating bill for the 3,468-square foot home is projected to be less than $400 while the air conditioning is estimated to cost less than $60 per year. 

NAHB Emerald Certification is only awarded after a qualified third party inspects the project to verify that the home meets the required standards in lot design, preparation and development; resource, energy and water efficiency, indoor environmental quality and builder owner education.  Emerald is the highest possible ranking. 

According to the US Dept. of Energy, half of American families spend one-fifth or more of their household income on energy-related expenditures.

 

What Does It Mean to Build a Green Development?

What does it mean to build a green development? It can mean different things in different settings.

The NAHB Site Design and Development chapter in the National Green Building Standard, the guideline for certification of green building projects, lays out the criteria for qualifying a development as green. It addresses a wide variety of possible aspects that a green development might embody. 

As with any green project, the most basic principle is value. No amount of green trimmings is going to sell property if it’s not a really attractive place to live at a decent price. There simply is not a clientele that is looking for a green lifestyle at the expense of comfort, accessibility, quality, and a sense of home. Bruce Frost, the green building educator from Central Michigan University is fond of saying that green building at its most basic level is simply building with integrity. So it is with development.

When I proposed the Cedar Valley Ridge development in 2002, I had no idea that it would become Michigan’s first NAHB green-certified development, or that it would become the first development in the United States to be certified at the Four Star level, the highest certification offered by NAHB. I wasn’t interested in building a green development. “Green” wasn’t part of the language of the marketplace at the time. I merely intended to build the type of development that my wife and I would want to live in. That meant, among other things, a place that would foster relationship with nature, that would provide easy access to ways to exercise and stay fit, and that would provide a strong sense of community.

There are many other attributes, though, that can contribute to making a development green. One of the primary characteristics for some certification agencies is density. Good use of land resources calls for reducing sprawl. The certification requirements under some green program demand a level of density that almost require a development be urban. As a matter of fact, I doubt that Cedar Valley Ridge would even qualify as a green development under some of the other standards. However, I believe there is a place for rural green development. More about this later.

In general, green development under the NAHB Standard means:

·         Selecting an appropriate site. Preference is given to infill or greyfield/brownfield sites.

·         Assembling a team with a mission statement and goals, and providing education and guidelines to all members of the development team, including subcontractors.

·         Designing the site to protect the environment and enhance the natural features and resources of the site.

·         Providing building sites that will facilitate implementation of green features in the structure.

·         Planning the landscaping to build on the local ecology instead of replacing it, and to keep the use of energy, water, fertilizers, and herbicides/pesticides to a minimum.

·         Protect existing wildlife and plant life.

·         Use natural materials and re-use existing materials on the site.

·         Provide as many dwellings per acre as possible and/or cluster the building sites.

·         Minimize damage to the environment during construction.

·         Implement innovative practices to bring new ideas in design, construction, materials use, zoning, etc. to the marketplace.

That list is good as far as it goes. Clearly, based on the objectives for Cedar Valley Ridge, I would add to that list the building of community among the owners after the lots are bought. For a development to fulfill the intent of building green, it has to be more than just a green facility. The purpose of building a green development or a green home is ultimately to protect the planet – to save energy and to prevent destruction of the environment. If we build buildings or developments that are designed to do those things, but don’t educate the buyers or convey that vision to them, the building or development will not fulfill its intent. I can live in an energy efficient house, but if I leave the doors and windows open in Winter, it’s still going to waste energy. If a community doesn’t buy into the concepts behind a green neighborhood, it’s not going to be a green neighborhood for long.

Part of the education – the vision-sharing process – can be built into the restrictions in the master deed. The most essential part of the process, though, is the developer’s responsibility to follow through with educating buyers and fostering a sense of green community after the sale. It isn’t typically considered normal for a developer to be involved in a community after the sale, but I think it’s essential for the health of a green neighborhood. It’s also good business. Providing a clear and accomplishable vision of maintaining a neighborhood that fosters relationship with nature and with green living concepts is a great way to help build community spirit, and a strong and cohesive community is one of the primary qualities that attracts potential buyers.

Marketing a green development is no different than marketing any development. While a green label may bring in some free media exposure – which can represent some of the best advertising you can get – the green label in itself is unlikely to bring potential buyers to a project. “Green” generally appears to be way down the list on most buyers’ list of priorities. What is high on the list of priorities is what green represents in a project: access to nature – especially here in northern Michigan, a strong feeling of neighborhood, and the quality of lifestyle that a green project can provide. Those are strong selling points, and they are an essential part of what green development represents. As I’ve made presentations around the US on green development, it’s clear that this is a direction that is going to be a strong part of the development market in the coming years. Developers are beginning to see the potential in this market, and prospective buyers are asking for these characteristics. Incidentally, market surveys have shown that the most attractive selling point in a green development is the existence in the project of a system of nature trails.

The Cedar Valley Ridge project consists of thirty-five lots clustered on one hundred seventy acres. As I mentioned earlier, in some green certification protocols, this development wouldn’t even qualify for consideration because of the low density. We have a unique situation here in northern Michigan. We have an excellent and active land conservancy community that has preserved thousands of acres. We live in an area that will experience dramatic growth in the coming decades. We could end up with pockets of natural area surrounded by subdivisions. Doesn’t it make more sense to develop in a way that preserves land and at the same time allows people to live there? Cedar Valley Ridge represents this kind of transition between conservation land and urban living. The thirty-five lots are clustered on forty-five acres, leaving the remaining approximately seventy-five percent of the land in a permanently protected, private nature preserve that can never be developed. This protects some beautiful, environmentally sensitive land and allows an opportunity for people to live close to nature. It also can also help maintain wildlife corridors.

There are now many green developments around the country, representing a number of different approaches. The first NAHB green-certified development in the US is The Village at Burns Harbor, just across the border in Indiana. It’s an urban development that artfully brings together a sense of neighborhood and nature. Many other subdivisions exhibiting a wide range of interpretations of green development have been certified in the last four years. And no description of green development would be complete without looking at the work of Ross Chapin, whose book Pocket Neighborhoods was recently published by Taunton Press. Ross has worked for decades with Sarah Susanka, the author of the Not So Big House books. Pocket Neighborhoods are small developments, usually no more than a few acres, with an average of twelve to sixteen not-so-big houses, that are a remarkable expression of beauty, good use of resources, and vibrant community. You can learn more about Pocket Neighborhoods at http://www.pocket-neighborhoods.net/.

If you’re interested in learning more about green development, visit the NAHB website at http://www.nahb.org/page.aspx/category/sectionID=1801

Dan Paulson is the developer, with his wife Susan Sherman, of Cedar Valley Ridge, Michigan’s first NAHB-certified subdivision, and the first in the US to be certified at the Four Star level. Cedar Valley Ridge is eight miles west of Traverse City in Long Lake Township.

Builders Get Leg-Up on Competition at Upcoming Green Building Conference Nashville Event to Feature Homes Tour, Education, Exhibit Hall and More

WASHINGTON, April 13--Building professionals looking to expand their green building skills, or those just getting started in building green, will find tools for success at the 2012 National Green Building Conference and Expo in Nashville, Tenn., April 29-May 1.

Hosted by the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), the annual conference will be held at the Nashville Convention Center. It will feature an exhibit hall with cutting-edge green products, a wide variety of education courses, unmatched networking opportunities and notable speakers and special events.

The event will be kicked off with a keynote session from renowned around-the-world solo sailor, Derek Hatfield. In his most recent race, Hatfield relied on solar and wind power instead of fossil fuels to generate the electricity needed during the race - an approach that goes hand-in-hand with the main principles of working toward a more sustainable future. He will share his exciting experiences and stories of circumnavigating the globe, and discuss his efforts in sustainability.

Two new offerings at the show this year provide building professionals with insights into the green market, and tips for enhancing their green building techniques. They are:

· Analysis of the Green Market--McGraw-Hill Construction, NAHB and Waste Management, Inc. will reveal the results of a new Smart Market Report on Residential Green Building. The report highlights the growth of green building and provides building professionals with insight into potential market opportunities, consumer preferences and industry trends.

· Green Building Plan Review--Attendees will have the opportunity to review their building plans with an architect, an accredited verifier for the National Green Building Certification Program and a home builder. All are experienced in working with the National Green Building Standard, which was the result of a partnership between NAHB and the International Code Council. They will be able to answer questions and provide practical tips and suggestions for making projects greener and more efficient.

"We are excited to be able to offer so many exciting opportunities for builders and remodelers to expand their knowledge of green building," said Eric Borsting, chairman of the National Green Building Conference and Expo. "Conference attendees will get the full experience with classroom training, tours of green homes, a showcase of green products, networking opportunities, knowledgeable speakers and much more."

Another conference highlight is the annual Green Building & Technology Tour, which offers builders a glimpse into the design and green building practices used by local builders. Attendees have the chance to hear firsthand about the building process, the green building certifications used and the value the homes bring to their owners.

Additionally, attendees are invited to attend the Muddy Boots Mixer and Awards event, for a night of networking, live music, food and recognition of the year's best in green building.

To register for the National Green Building Conference and Expo, or for additional information, visit www.nahb.org/greenbuildingconference.

[EDITOR'S NOTE: Complimentary registration is available to credentialed members of the working press. For more information, please contact Liz Thompson, at ethompson@nahb.org.]

GREEN BUILDING 101

Blower Door Testing

Some of you may have heard of a blower door test but most have not and few have ever seen one done.  My goal with today’s column is to explain what a blower door test is, why it’s important to home owners, how a test is performed and what the test results mean.            

What is a blower door test?

A blower door is a large powerful variable speed fan that is installed in an adjustable fabric frame designed to be installed in a residential door opening.  The fan sucks air out of the house, essentially depressurizing it. The door is equipped with a gauge (manometer) that displays the difference in air pressure between outside the home and inside the home (50 pascals of air pressure differential is typical for testing, equal to a 20 mile per hour wind blowing on all sides of the home) and the cubic feet per minute of air being exhausted from the home (CFM/50).

Why is a blower door test important?

Air flow through a building can have a powerful impact on comfort, indoor air quality and utility bills.  Blower doors provide a way to quantify air flow and the resulting heat loss, along with a way to pin point specific leaks.  There use in retrofit work allows both instantaneous feedback and quantitative inspections. Uncontrolled air loss from a home can have a significant impact. Typically air leakage can account for as much as 25% or more of a home’s heat loss, i.e. higher energy bills.  Nearly all government and utility founded energy saving programs require a blower door test.

How is a blower door test performed?

The blower door is installed in an exterior door opening that allows the greatest air flow from the rest of the house.  All other doors and windows are closed and locked.  All interior doors are opened so air flows easily thought the house.  If the basement and/or crawl space is within the thermal envelope (directly or indirectly heated) all openings to those spaces need to be opened.  All intentional openings are to be left in their normal operating condition (bath fans, range hoods, furnace/boiler chimneys, dryer, etc.  All fires must be out in fire places and wood stoves and all fireplace openings are sealed to prevent scattering of ashes throughout the home (I learned this the hard way). All combustion appliances are adjusted so they don’t turn on during the test.  The blower door fan is turned on and adjusted to 50 pascals of pressure differential between indoors and outdoors and the cubic feet of air per minute (CFM/50) exhausted from the home is recorded. 

What does the blower door result mean?

 When the blower door test is completed we take the data from the gages together with the homes information (volume, floor area, surface area, number of bedrooms, number of occupants, wind shielding and weather conditions at the time of the test) and enter all this data into a computer program which provides us with a Building Air Tightness Test Report.

    

Below are listed three of the reports with a description of what they represent and what the number would be for a tight house, a moderately leaking house and a very leaky house.  Keep in mind that the leakiness numbers listed should only be used as a guide and may very greatly depending on many specifics of the house being tested.

CFM/50:  The flow, in cubic feet per minute with a 50 Pascals of pressure difference between inside and outside the house.

     Tight houses tend to be less than 1,200 CFM/50

     Moderately leaky houses 1,500-2,500 CFM/50

     Quite leaky houses over 3,000 CFM/50

ACH/50:   The air changes per hour at 50 Pascals of pressure difference between inside and outside the house.  Air changes per hour, a description of leakage as compared to house air volume.  The number of times each hour an amount of air equal to the volume of the house leaks out.  Used for both blower door measurements and estimates of Air Changes Per Hour @ Natural (ACH/N).

     Tight houses ten to be less than 5-6 ACH/50                                                                                     

     Moderately leaky houses – less than 10-15 ACH/50

     Quite leaky houses – over 20 ACH/50

ELA:  Effective leakage area.  The area in square inches of a hole which, with 4 Pascals pressure difference, leaks the same amount as the house.  In other words if all the air leaks in a house were put in one place the hole would be the size of the ELA.

     Tight houses tend to be less than 144 sq. in. ELA (12”X12” hole)

     Moderately leaky houses have less than 324 sq. in. (18”X18” hole)

     Quite leaky houses are over 576 sq. in. (24”X24” hole)

Max Strickland has been involved in the construction industry for 44 years.  He is currently a principal with Strickland Ewing & Associates providing Building Performance Consulting, Green Building Program Verifications, Energy Star/Hers Ratings, Infrared Imaging, Energy Auditing, Energy Code Inspections and Building Forensic Investigations. Questions and comments can be directed to max@stricklandewing.com or you can visit his web site at www.negs2.com to view previous Green Building 101 articles.

BETTER BUILDINGS FOR MICHIGAN

The City of Traverse City along with two local non-profits, SEEDS and the Michigan Land Use Institute has recently been awarded a grant for a pilot state wide program called "Better Buildings for Michigan". This public and non-profit partnership includes participation of Traverse city Light and Power as part of their energy efficiency work in the community. Often opportunities like this are only available in major metropolitan areas so this is a very big deal for Traverse City and tribute to the efforts of our community.

"Better Building for Michigan" uses a community approach to deliver energy efficient improvements for homes by providing access to incentives and affordable loans. The so called "Neighborhood Sweeps" are designed to use skilled local consultants and contractors and economies of scale to provide a large quantity of homes in targeted neighborhoods with energy efficient improvements. The objectives are to reduce energy consumption, improve occupant health and comfort and reduce the homes negative impact on the environment.

The two neighborhoods consist of over 1,000 homes whose owners will have this opportunity. Each will be personally contacted either in person or by phone to have the program explained to them. They will have an opportunity to ask any questions they may have.

If the home owner is interested in the program, an appointment will be made with a Michigan Saves authorized participating contractor to do an on site inspection of the home using testing equipment and software tools to determine how efficiently the house uses energy. The assessment will also identify ways to address common problems such as ice dams, moisture on windows, drafty rooms and dry indoor air. Once the assessment is complete, home owners receive a detailed report and estimate of energy savings for specific improvements so they can make the best choices for their home. The contractor will also provide and install items from an energy efficiency kit (direct install items) that could include things like programmable thermostats, low flow shower-heads, pipe wrapping and simple weather sealing around doors and windows.

The assessment with report and instillation of the energy efficiency kit items are offered as an incentive to sign up for the program.

The home owner then comes to an agreement with the contractor for the improvements they decide are appropriate for their home and budget. The program is monitored locally by the City of Traverse City, SEEDS and the Michigan Land Use Institute.

The affordably hassle free low/no interest loans are made available by the Michigan Saves Home Energy Loan Program.

Some reasons to take advantage of this program:

As a nation we have to find ways to use less energy and our homes are the low hanging fruit. Using less energy saves home owners money. Incentives and low/no interest loans stretch improvement dollars. Contractors are vetted by Michigan Saves and the work is subject to a third party quality control program. A successful pilot program will result in future similar efforts.

The specific details of the Traverse City Sweep are still being developed and will be made available soon in public announcements.

Past sweeps in other parts of the state consist of two stages:

• Base Package: An energy assessment and direct install items - small home-owner co-pay.
• Enhance Package: Blower door assisted air sealing, insulation, and other energy efficiency up grades, rebates and low interest financing available.

For additional information on the Better Buildings for Michigan- Traverse City Program contact Brian Beauchamp at the Michigan Land Use Institute (MLUI) 231-941-6584 ext. 19 or brian@MLUI.org.

Max Strickland has been involved in the construction industry for 44 years. He is currently a principal with Strickland-Ewing & Associates providing Building Performance Consulting, Green Building Program Verification, Energy Star/Hers Ratings, Infrared Imaging and Energy Auditing. Questions and comments can be directed to max@stricklandewing.com or you can visit his web site at www.negs2.com to view previous Green Building 101 articles.

Appraisers Making Headway in Recognizing Value of Green Home Features

The continuing effort to provide recognition for the added value of energy-saving and other green features in homes will take another step forward around mid-summer when the Appraisal Institute is expected to add a green and energy addendum to its appraisal report form.

Green builders have been waging an uphill battle in recent years to convince the lending community to recognize the difference between homes that are just built to code and those that incorporate techniques, systems and products that can dramatically reduce monthly utility costs, which represent a significant expense for home owners.

Sandra Adomatis, whose firm, Adomatis Appraisal Service, is located in Punta Gorda, Fla., announced the new Appraisal Institute addendum on May 3 during NAHB’s National Green Building Conference & Expo in Salt Lake City.

Adomatis said she hopes the addendum will be adopted by the Federal Housing Administration, Fannie Mae andFreddie Mac. “Builders can fill it out ahead of time and give it to the appraiser,” she said, who “can’t always see what’s behind your walls.”

Adomatis confessed that she herself knew little about the attributes of green homes until she ran into a green builder whose home she was appraising who was kind enough to point out that she didn’t know what she was doing.

She told him it was the first green home she had ever worked on, and that prompted the builder to provide a crash course in green housing, the start of her education on an increasingly important segment of the housing industry about which most appraisers still know next to nothing.

“Ask 10 appraisers and only one has ever seen a HERS report,” she said, referring to the evaluation that a trained energy rater provides on the overall energy efficiency of an individual home.

The Appraisal Institute, she said, has been stepping up efforts to make its members more knowledgeable through its Valuation of Sustainable Buildings Professional Development Program, which is conducted in the classroom and online and whose curriculum includes an introductory course and a course presenting case studies on residential green buildings, with a similar course on commercial buildings coming on line soon.

Some builders have been signing up for the instruction, she added, and more courses will be added as new technologies are developed.

Correcting a ‘Blind Spot’ in Mortgage Underwriting

As commonly discussed during the conference, consumers themselves have a lot to learn about green building, and upgrading the existing housing stock, which lags far behind new housing in energy efficiency, represents a major opportunity for the industry.

Adomatis described one concept, embodied in legislation championed by Sen. Michael Benner (D-Colo.), that would correct a “blind spot” in current mortgage underwriting and home appraisal practices by adding expected energy costs to the principal, interest, taxes and insurance now entered into the equation when qualifying a buyer for a mortgage.

The SAVE (Sensible Accounting to Value Energy) Act would hand a clear advantage to new homes over existing homes, she said, but also would create a healthy retrofit market.

The second phase of the program envisioned by SAVE would tackle water consumption.

Adomatis recommended Home Energy Saver Pro as a tool for assessing average utility bills for homes compared to other homes in the same zip code. “This is a good tool for appraisers,” she said.

Finding Qualified Appraisers

Along with other panelists, Adomatis emphasized that finding appraisers who are experienced in green is key for green builders and their customers.

“Qualify the appraiser,” she said, and determine “what education and experience they have in green. Ask lenders to ask for them.”

“The appraiser is still under pressure from the lender,” she added, stemming largely from policies in the secondary mortgage market, where extra construction costs for green are not allowed to be used in valuations.

“The comparables have to be there,” Adomatis said, making it important to pair up houses to demonstrate the savings in average monthly utility bills in a more expensive, and valuable, green home over a comparable home built to code.

In cases where there are disagreements over appraisals of green homes, Adomatis directed builders to guidance provided by Fannie Mae last year.

“If the lender has concerns with any aspect of the appraisal that result in questions about the reliability of the opinion of market value, the lender must attempt to resolve its concerns with the appraiser who originally prepared the report,” she said, and “try to work it out with them.”

However, if the appraiser has overlooked certain green features and has not correctly described the quality of the property, that can be the basis hiring someone else to complete the appraisal report.

If they are unable to resolve their concerns with the appraiser, “the lender must obtain a replacement report prior to making a final underwriting decision on the loan,” Adomatis advised.

Greening the Multiple Listing Services

Including green attributes in the homes on Multiple Listing Services has received a major push in the past couple of years from those who understand the need for sales comps to show appraisers and lenders how green certifications and features can boost the value of green homes and to enable prospective buyers to more effectively search for the green homes they want.

On that battlefront, there has been considerable headway, according to Al Medina, director of the National Association of Realtors®’ (NAR) Green Resource Council, but there is considerably further to go in aggregating data from the MLS system.

Comps are the “holy grail” in the quest for a system that can support proper green home appraisals, Medina said, but the going has been slower than he would like because the nation’s 862 MLSs are independently owned and the NAR is not constituted so that it can dictate to local Realtor® groups what they must do on this issue.

A Realtors® survey at the end of last year found that 80 of the MLSs, or 13%, had live searchable green fields.

About 70, or 11%, were in the process of implementing these fields, and about 80, or 13%, said they were in the planning stages.

That leaves several hundred MSLs that have yet to take steps to incorporate green into their listings, but Medina pointed out that there were fewer than 20 of the services that acknowledged green in their listings before the NAR launched its Green MLS Tool Kit in April of 2010.

Designed to support the flow of green home information in the marketplace and provide a step-by-step process that MLSs can follow to include green in their listings, this educational resource is already receiving a makeover.

The Tool Kit 2.0 will be more concise and better organized, and it will provide the opportunity to make “another marketing and communications push to MLS owners and operators,” Medina said.

A Need for Documentation

The Realtors®’ Green Resource Council is also working to address some of the significant shortcomings that have been found in the early adapters of adding green to their listing fields.

“The problem is, agents aren’t using the fields or are putting in wrong information,” Medina said. “The MLS has to have a way of preventing erroneous entries, and some only have one serviceable field.”

With a focus on comps and appraisers, efforts are now underway to ensure that the MLS green fields include documentation, with possible certifications including the National Green Building Standard, a RESNET- orDepartment of Energy-approved HERS rating and Energy Star Qualified New Homes.

“Appraisers need validated comparables,” he said. “Documentation is critical.”

Efforts are also underway to link green programs to MLSs, he said, starting with builders, architects and contractors. Evolving retrofit programs include the Better Buildings Initiative in 35 communities, Home Performance With Energy Star and DOE’s Home Energy Score.

Medina also reminded builders that NAR Green Designees are available to lend their expertise.

Keeping Up the Pressure

Leading efforts for years to make green mortgages a mainstay of the financing options available to home buyers, David Porter, of Porterworks in Stanwood, Wash., indicated that now is hardly the time to ease up on exerting pressure on the lending, appraisal and sales community.

While there are many lending products available that recognize the value of green homes, both for new housing and renovations, none is being consistently offered by lenders, he said.

“Force lenders to learn these programs,” Porter said. “Require lenders to get trained and offer programs to borrowers at the time of loan application.”

Builders should also be pushing for the inclusion of green in consumer search sites.

And “when you build green, have the certification recorded with the title so that it will travel with the property,” Porter said.

“Communicate to the buyer what the power of green is,” he said. “Go through the list of green features and turn them into benefits, such as a higher R value equals lower utility costs.”

And builders need to ensure that the appraiser evaluating the home is competent, with the experience and education needed to do the job competently.

Porter also gave a plug for the Database of State Incentives for Renewables and Efficiency (DSIRE), which he called a “great resource.”

NAHB ANNOUNCES NATIONAL GREEN BUILDING AWARD WINNERS

SALT LAKE CITY, May 3- Thirteen builders, remodelers and other home building industry professionals were honored yesterday as winners of National Green Building Awards by the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) at the 13th annual National Green Building Conference in Salt Lake City.
"These awards recognize and celebrate the most forward-thinking builders and remodelers in green building," said Bob Jones, immediate past chairman of NAHB and a builder from Bloomfield Hills, Mich. "These award winners are pushing the envelope of what we can achieve with energy and resource efficiency."
Sponsored by Bosch Home Appliances, Mohawk Industries and SolarCity, the awards dinner was one of the highlights of the three-day conference, which featured educational programs, an exhibition of green products and a tour of local green homes and developments.

Individual Project Awards

Five single-family home projects were honored:

· Tall Pines Construction, for the Sungazing House in Park City, Utah, for Project of the Year, Single-Family Custom Home.

· Habitat for Humanity, Bay-Waveland Area, of Hancock County, Miss., for Project of the Year, Affordable Single-Family.

· Imagine Homes of San Antonio, Texas, for Project of the Year, Single-Family Production Builder.

· Zero-Energy Plans LLC, of Coupeville, Wash., for Project of the Year, Single-Family Concept and Research.

· Imery and Company, of Athens, Ga., for Project of the Year, Small-Volume Single-Family Builder.

Two remodeling projects and one multifamily project were also honored:

· Sun Mountain Construction Inc. of Corrales, N.M., for Single-Family Remodel over $100,000, which won for the Noel and Cooper home.

· Ferrier Custom Homes of Fort Worth, Texas, for Single-Family Remodel under $100,000, which won for the Lovell Remodel.

· Actus Lend Lease of Nashville, Tenn., won Project of the Year, Multifamily Low-rise, four stories or less, for Campbell Crossing Zero Energy Homes at Fort Campbell, Ky.

Green Building Advocacy Awards

Five awards were given to individuals or organizations for their efforts in green building advocacy:

Addison Homes of Greer, S.C., as Advocate of the Year in the Builder category.

Philip Beere of Green Street Development in Scottsdale, Ariz., as Remodeler Advocate of the Year.

Dr. Jennifer Languell of Fort Myers, Fla., as Individual Advocate of the Year|.

The Home Builders Association of Greater Tulsa, Okla., as Home Builders Association Advocate of the Year.

The Home Builders Association of Middle Tennessee's Green Building Council and Habitat for Humanity of Williamson County, Tenn., as Advocate of the Year in the Group category.

Additional information about the National Green Building Awards can be found at www.nahb.org/greenbuildingawards.