Builders Gone Wild

Posted By Scott on March 9, 2010

An Energy Star home in one that is specifically designed and built with higher energy efficiency than homes that our only constructed to the present day building codes.
An Energy Star home has to be approved by a certified third party inspector, also known as a rater. This process confirms that the builder has made specific improvements that are above the current code.
An Energy Star home uses considerably less energy than a similar home that is only built to code. The owner of an Energy Star home will save several thousand dollars on energy cost.
Energy Star homes are inspected during the final phase of construction, using specialized equipment. The home is first tested for air infiltration or leakage, known as a blower door test. The home must pass specific measurements to be approved. A second major test is conducted on the heating and air conditioning system. The duct blaster test is utilized to see how much air is leaking from the duct work. To meet Energy Star guidelines only a small amount is allowed. Specialized software from the department of energy is used to test a homes performance.
When you close on your Energy Star home you will receive certified paperwork that is registered with the DOE. Resale value on Energy Star homes will be higher due to lower operational cost.
Energy Star homes live better, provide more air infiltration protection and reduce outdoor noise. Additionally, all Energy Star homes have to meet EPA guidelines.
Energy Star homeowners will also be contributing to a lower carbon footprint by lowering the use of imported oil and fossil fuels.
For more information on Energy Star visit www.potterhillhomes.com where each home is built to Energy Star specifications.

Category: Energy Efficient Building, Energy Star | No Comments »
Tags: buying a new home, Cincinnati Home Builder, Construction Quality, energy efficiency, energy efficient home building, Energy Star, Scott Wolf

Posted By Carolyn & Andy on March 8, 2010

You’re Invited!

Preview Party on March 25^th from 6-9 p.m.  at Mills of Miami

Location: Mills of Miami

            1360 Mills of Miami Boulevard

            Milford, OH 45150

When: Thursday, March 25, 6-9 p.m. and /or Saturday/Sunday the 27 & 28 from noon-5 p.m.

Please RSVP to RSVP@PotterhillHomes.com if you plan on attending. The cost to attend is FREE.

Potterhill Homes and Great Lifestyles present the preview party for the Shuffleton Model Home at the Mills of Miami where homes are priced from the $140’s!

Come join us for an evening out, benefitting Boys Hope Girls Hope of Greater Cincinnati.

Follow the progress of construction of this brand new model on Great Lifestyles television show on Sundays at 11 a.m. on WSTR STAR 64.

On the show, you’ll learn insider decor secrets, green building techniques, and energy efficient tips from various Potterhill reps including Presidnet Carolyn Rolfes, COO Andy Temmel, Sales Manager Scott Wolf, and Housing Consulatnt Vicki Painter. 

The decorated model will be unveiled and filmed live at this Preview Party on March 25th from 6-9 p.m. along with live entertainment, fabulous food by Maralyn Harris, and fun for the whole family.

The open house continues throughout the weekend. Join us Saturday & Sunday the 27th & 28th from Noon-5 – open to the public.

Great Lifestyles will be shooting live from the event on Saturday March 27th- and will be featured on Weekend at the Movies on Star 64.

Tour the Shuffleton model home for the first time ever and don’t forget to visit our other models and the beautiful Mills of Miami clubhouse.

You’ll have the chance to purchase raffle tickets to win home decor items, and all proceeds will go to Boys Hope & Girls Hope of Greater Cincinnati. Raffle tickets will be sold for $10 each or 3 for $20- and the drawings will take place at 4 p.m. on Sunday.  You do not need to be present to win. The Delta Gamma soririty from NKU will be helping coordinate the entire raffle.

The cost to attend is FREE and you’re sure to have a fun evening. 
RSVP and bring a friend or two or three!   Please rsvp by sending an email to mailto: RSVP@Potterhillhomes.comand let us know how many will be joining you.

Category: Cincinnati Home Building, Community News, Home Builder Marketing, Home Building Industry News, Potterhill Homes News | No Comments »
Tags: buying a new home, Cincinnati Home Builder, Cincinnati Homebuilder, Home builder Marketing

Posted By Carolyn on March 4, 2010

At the RESNET conference, even a representative from the United Nations showed up. She was from the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, and spoke about the UN’s efforts to create a low carbon society across the globe.

Some astounding facts:

-          Greenhouse gas emissions increased 70% between the early 1970’s and the year 2000.

-          Buildings utilize 1/3 of the world’s resources, and in the United States 76% of all energy is used for buildings.  The top 2 cities in terms of energy consumption from across the globe are Denver & Los Angeles. 

-          In residential settings, heating & lighting are the top 2 users of energy.

In an effort to quell further increases and to control carbon emissions, the Sustainable Buildings Climate Initiative has been introduced by the UN.

Their means of accomplishing a low carbon society is primarily through policy, and as they see it, they have 5 policy options.

1. Improve overall energy efficiency
2. Mandate more energy efficient appliances
3. Encourage power providers to support reduction of green house gasses through rebate programs
4. Change building occupant behavior
5. Substitute fossil fuels with renewable energy

They plan on accomplishing these policy goals by first benchmarking, then base lining & standardizing for target performance, and then perhaps most importantly MONTEIZING. 

The monetizing could come in the form of rebates or incentives, but could also come in the form of taxes and penalties for non-compliance.

The European Union already has a mandate to have energy labels on ALL buildings, and by 2020 all new buildings built in the EU will have to consume “near zero energy.” This is mandatory compliance with penalties for non-compliance.

Currently these green/ energy efficient programs are optional in the United States, but with this worldwide pressure to increase building performance, it can’t be long until the US gets serious about competing in this global low-carbon arena. 

For more information visit the UN’s Sustainable Building & Climate Initiative website at:

http://www.unep.org/sbci/index.asp

Category: Energy Efficient Building, Energy Star, Green Building, Home Building Industry News, energy efficiency | No Comments »
Tags: Carolyn Rolfes, Cincinnati Home Builder, Environmental Policy, green building

Posted By Carolyn on February 23, 2010

This week I am at the RESNET (Residential Energy Services Network) Conference in North Carolina, where there are over 900 attendees at this 3 day event.

If anyone questioned whether the Residential Energy market was growing or not, they need look no further than this conference.  There are 900+ attendees this year, and that number is up almost 200 over last year’s attendees, which was up almost 200 over the 2008 conference. 

Attendees include HERS raters (Home Energy raters) as well as a few builders/ contractors, exhibitors ranging from insulation to software, lenders and LEED Providers, as well as representatives from utility companies and even the United Nations.  

The three day conference is filled with seminars of varying topics from Air Infiltration Prevention to HUD’s Energy Efficient Mortgage Initiative. 

One common theme that seems to resonate through the conference is that retrofitting existing homes to be more energy efficient is an absolute must if we ever hope to make a dent in the exorbitant amount of energy used by our buildings.

While there were a total of about 121,939 newly constructed homes that received the EnergyStar label in 2008 (approximately 16.8% of all new homes built that year), that number is not enough to make a real difference in the over all energy efficiency of all buildings. Even if 100% of all newly constructed homes were built to EnergyStar standards in 2008, that number would still represent only 1% of the total housing stock in the U.S.

While building to EnergyStar on new construction will help- retrofitting existing homes- either through government mandates or volunteer incentive programs- is going to have to take place if we ever hope to wean ourselves from foreign oil and fossil fuels. 

RESNET has endorsed a program called REEP (Retrofit for Energy & Environmental Performance) – which was introduced as legislation by Congressman Peter Welch (D-VT) in 2009 to provided homeowners and businesses incentives to reduce their energy use. Homeowners could qualify for cash incentives or interest rate subsidies depending on the percent increase in energy efficiency for many energy efficient improvements (up to a 50% cap on the cost of the retrofit).  RESNET continues to work toward receiving funding for this program.

Another potential source of retrofit funding out there is the Home Star plan.  This “cash for caulkers” for homes was unanimously endorsed by the President’s Economic Recovery Advisory Board late last year. Home Star (a.k.a. “Cash for Caulkers”) is now on the table as Congress crafts a series of bills targeting job creation.

The movement toward energy efficiency is growing leaps and bounds.  If you’re ready to build a new home, why don’t you check out Potterhill Homes- where each and every home we build is 50% more energy efficient on heating and cooling than required by the energy code- and we have every home certified by a third party to prove it. Some day all homes will be built the Potterhill way.

For more information on RESNET visit http://www.natresnet.org

Category: Cincinnati Home Building, Energy Efficient Building, Energy Star, Green Building, Home Building Industry News, Uncategorized, energy efficiency | No Comments »
Tags: Cincinnati Homebuilder, Construction Quality, energy efficiency, energy efficient home building, energy efficient homes, Energy Star, EnergyStar, green building

Posted By Carolyn & Andy on February 17, 2010

Here is an article released today by the Homebuilder’s Association of Greater Cincinnati with more good news about the economic recovery:

Monthly New Home Permits/Prices Rise

 CINCINNATI – Single family building permits were up 19 percent in January, compared to the same month in 2009, reports the Home Builders Association of Greater Cincinnati (HBA).

There were a total of 94 new home permits issued in the four-county area of Butler, Clermont, Hamilton and Warren counties last month and only 79 issued for January 2009.

Warren County registered the highest number of new permits with 37, compared to 29 in January 2009. The average regional new home price was $194,845 last month, compared to $179,504 in January 2009.

“This monthly snapshot is an indication that momentum is increasing and consumer confidence is returning to the regional housing market,” said Dan Dressman, Executive Director.

The HBA of Greater Cincinnati is the largest local chapter of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) in Ohio and one of the top 20 largest HBAs in the country with nearly 1,000 member companies.  Visit http://www.cincybuilders.com/  for more details.

Category: $8000 Tax Credit, Cincinnati Home Building, Community News, Home Building Industry News, Home Buyer Tax Credit, Uncategorized | No Comments »
Tags: cincinnati home values, how much is my house worth