studio26 homes published in Green Builder Magazine

Nov 01, 2006

The nationally distributed publication, Green Builder Magazine, featured our Demonstration Home’s “(very) cool, green roof and wall system” in the November issue.  Green Builder Media chose to publish studio26 homes’ concept for their creative and effective approach to a very critical design element – the shell of the home.  Green Builder Magazine is a monthly publication focused exclusively on green building and sustainable development for the residential building community.

It has been 15 years since the first green building program was created in Austin, Texas. Since then, dozens more have been introduced, each with its own structure, its own definition of green, and its own system for deciding who gets a green label. After notable success in the commercial construction sector, the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) is piloting a LEED for Homes program, called LEED-H. LEED-H is a rigorous, points-based system, but it differs notably from the NAHB Model Green Home Building Guidelines and other voluntary-compliance programs because builders can be penalized for building large homes (over 2,500 square feet). Builders must also incur costs for the performance audits, as well as costs to upgrade the homes so they pass the audits. It can cost up to $3,000 per home to get LEED-H Certified by USGBC-approved inspectors, and requires the completion of six for ms. (USGBC claims that as the inspection network matures, these inspection costs will drop to around $1,000 per house.) USGBC estimates that upgrades to a $300,000 home to certify it for LEED-H would cost around $10,000. These costs obviously must be absorbed by the builder or tacked on to the price of the home. USGBC will take up to two more years to pilot LEED-H and act on feedback. Then, USGBC will compete in the marketplace with other standard and certifying agencies to offer builders and buyers another system for rating their homes and a method for certifying green builder.

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