Build Smart

Most newly constructed homes are built to be energy efficient right? Wrong. Yet, if you were to ask the typical consumer building a new home whether or not it would be energy efficient they would say “yes”. After all, it’s easy to take for granted that new homes are automatically built to be energy efficient. However, that can be a costly assumption.

While the new home industry has made progress toward building more energy efficient homes, there remains substantial room for improvement. Why?

Many consumers tend to focus on the more easily seen cosmetic features of their new home. Besides, these are the decisions that are fun to make. Also, many consumers don’t realize that they have a choice when considering how energy efficient their home can be. They assume that the energy-related decisions are usually made by the builder (type and size of equipment, insulation, etc.).

As one Little Rock company, specializing in energy efficiency, points out, “no one ever plans to build an ugly house, sometimes they just end up building one with an ugly utility bill”.

Yet it doesn’t have to be that way. In fact, the homeowner can and should have input and control over energy related decisions. After all, the homeowner will be paying the monthly utility bill – not the builder or the heating and air contractor.

More and more, discriminating homeowners are beginning to look beyond hardwood floors, Jacuzzi tubs and crown molding. While an upgrade to a cosmetic feature is desirable (and can add value to the home), it also results in a higher monthly mortgage payment – or in other words, it has a negative monthly cash flow impact for the homeowner.

On the other hand, upgrades to a home’s energy efficiency not only results in a higher home value, they are also the only home design decisions that result in a positive monthly cash flow (lower energy bills).

There are also other significant benefits to new homeowners that may be just as important as lower energy bills: greater year-round comfort, controlled humidity, and reduced dust and other allergens. These are all benefits which enhance the homeowner’s overall lifestyle.

David Austin of Energy Master Home, a Little Rock based efficiency Services Company, talks about the gradual move to more energy efficient new home construction: “the ingredients necessary for building a super energy efficient new home have been around for years. It’s not a radical or revolutionary concept, the technology just happens to be ten years ahead of what is commonly practiced in the marketplace”.

So why don’t more builders focus on making their homes more energy efficient?

“Until consumers are informed of the choices they have and the long-term benefits of building an energy efficient home, they’re not sure what to ask or where to turn for an unbiased expert opinion”, Austin explains. “That’s what our company is all about. While the majority of our work deals with cutting utility bills and improve comfort in existing homes, we also strive to educate consumers about the importance of focusing on energy efficiency and comfort on the front-end when building a new home. It’s much less costly and hassle-free then trying to fix problems once the house is completed. Until the consumer demands that energy efficiency measures be considered when building their new home, many builders are not prone to change their traditional methods”.

“Currently, Energy Master Home works with a select group of builders in the Little Rock area that have shown an uncompromising commitment to offering new homebuyers long-lasting value, and that includes superior quality energy efficient homes that deliver the utmost in year-round comfort and lower energy bills. We will work directly with the homeowner or their designated builder to ensure their new home is built the Energy Master way”.

Don’t let a builder or contractor take advantage of you because you are uneducated about your homes total comfort. Why would you want to pay someone to build you and inefficient and uncomfortable home? Energy Master Home, Inc. can not only educate you on your homes total comfort, but we can also make sure that when you pay for a new home, you are getting the most efficient, comfortable and healthiest living environment available. With Energy Master Home, Inc., “You get what you pay for!"