Area home buyers choosing deals and glitz over green - South Florida Business Journal:

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Most local home buyers choose the another feature or they pocketrthe money, instead of shelling out to make theirr new home more water or energy efficient. Betweejn January and October, about 230, or 5 of the homes built in Northeast Florida received a rebat through Green Built Homesdof Florida, a program promoting energy- and water-efficien t building practices for single-family The program was created in 2006 to help builders find theire way through the many, and often times green building-related certification options. There are about 80 green-buildintg standards nationally, which often are tailored to localo needs, said Bruce manager of conservationat JEA.
Seventy-five percent to 80 percen of homes that follow the JEA program applyfor rebates, said David a conservation coordinator with JEA. Only homes builyt within JEA's electrical service area are eligibl efor rebates, but other builders have used the program despits not being eligible for rebates. Reed expectzs the number of green homes built to increasre as people understand the energy and wateresavings available, along with the valud added to the home.
But the publixc still doesn't fully understanf the energy savings available by having homew built with features suchas high-performance tightly sealed ducts, and highly efficient heating and cooling Builders can differentiate their homes through green especially as the market said Ellen Leroy-Reed, public advocacy chairwoman for the 's North Florida Chapter. Custom home builders, like Jacksonville-based , are having bettefr results withgreen building. Mark a CornerStone Homes partner, said electricity and gas priced haven't gotten to the point where buyers see greenh homesas necessary. The single-homew builder had its houses in the Austihn Park communityin St.
Johns Count certified using the JEA But when the certificationis optional, buyers tend to pass on it, he It costs $3,000 to $4,000 more to build a home that can be certified under the JEA program, he said. Inspectione for certification can also slow saidWayland Wiseman, chief operating officer of Jacksonville-basedx . Because his homes already have a high leve l ofenergy conservation, it cost s about $300 to get it Energty Star-certified. The Energy Star program was createx by the andthe . In the two yeard the company has offered the Energy Star no customers have optedfor it, Wisemann said. "Everybody wants to be watere and energy-friendly, but do they want it bad enougnh topay for?
" Custom builders, such as Hoviw Custom Builders Inc., have had bettedr luck. "The only way I build is President and Founder DanHovis "Most people come to me because of the way I buildd a house." He said some buyers will pay 8 percent or 10 percent more on the home so that it can be certifieds Energy Star Plus. That program certifiese homes that are at least 50 percent more energy efficient than require d bybuilding code, said Hovis, who builds five to 10 homes per year. Energy Star requires buildings to be at leasft 15 percent more energy efficient than buildingcodes require.
Hovixs is looking into getting Waterf Starcertification -- the aqua equivalen t to Energy Star -- for homexs he is building at The King & The Bear developmenyt at World Golf Village. Green residentia building is not as prevalent in Northeast Florida as in Centrapl andSouthwest Florida, said spokeswoman Edie "The builders are educated and understand how to meet the green built process, but the consumers have to be readyh to make the investment.
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