In green construction, designers and builders commit to minimizing waste, improving a building's efficiency in terms of energy and water use, using sustainable or recycled products, and protecting indoor air quality.
A number of realtors around the country have reported increasing buyer requests for green homes. Citing consumer demand, the Northwest MLS (Multiple Listing Service) recently announced that it is updating its database to allow for property searches based on a range of green features.
Maude Salinger, a spokesperson for the first residential green neighborhood in New Hampshire, Peterborough's Nubanusit Neighborhood and Farm, explained in an e-mail that ten of the development's 29 homes were sold before even a single foundation was poured. Eight additional homes were snapped up well before completion. Some of the neighborhood's green features include an organic farm, a central pellet-fired heat plant, highly insulated structures, solar hot water collectors, natural and recycled materials, and perimeter parking (meaning there are no attached garages).
Owners of green homes tend to be happier than when they lived in more conventional digs, according to a recent NAHB/McGraw-Hill Construction survey. Perhaps another telling sign of the green shift in the building trades is the fact that almost 40 percent of Americans who recently renovated their dwellings did so with at least some green products.