The Net Zero Energy Story

The Vision

Even though there is a lot of interest in energy-efficient technologies, the housing market in the Delaware Valley has bee slow to catch up with what is possible in energy-high-performance homes. As a “vision project, we decided that the best way to make this vision a reality would be to design Net Zero Energy (NZE )homes, add our 40 years of construction expertise, and offer NZE homes for sale.  

First of all, they needed to be great HOMES. Market research from the National Association of Home Builders reflected what our custom home clients have been asking of us for years, including:

• inlaws/guest suites & possible “two master suite” options.

• handicapped accessibility with an elevator, for older family and friends today, with the security of a forever home for all.

• dedicated home offices.   65% of workers want to be remote all the time, 32.6 million Americans are estimated to be working remotely by 2025.  

• true open plan spaces with indoor/outdoor free-flow.

  • a private courtyard garden entry for a useful and private front yard

• Energy Efficiency.

The Reality

Almost everyone asks us this question first:  

"What do you mean by ‘Net Zero Energy’ ?"

A home is the most significant purchase most people ever make. Yet buyers are unfamiliar with the idea of NZE, the most valuable option. Of course not: Of approximately 30,000 homes for sale within 40 miles of Philadelphia, our Net Zero Energy homes are the ONLY NZE homes on the market. Buyers are unfamiliar with NZE homes because there aren’t any. Building codes don’t even mention NZE standards***. It’s more likely that INNOVATION not REGULATION will win the hearts and minds of buyers.

Buyers are unfamiliar with NZE, which would add more value to a home than anything else. It isn’t their fault: of 30,000 homes for sale within a 40-mile radius of Philadelphia, these are the only NZE homes!   Even building codes don't envision a pathway to NZE for decades ***

So we came up with a simple shorthand to summarize the Net Zero Energy story:

E = $   

Energy = Money

… and so much more.

Solving the E=$ Equation   

There are extraordinary incentives to buying an NZE home (with 3607 Gradyville as an example)

• Energy bill savings of $10,569 annually over a same-sized code-built home

• Savings of $480,571 projected over 20 years.  

• Additional purchasing power of $134,433 in principal + interest + energy payments compared to a PA code-built new home.

• Buyer gets Tax Credits of $53,200 = 30% of the qualified energy upgrades

We think intelligent home buyers will want to buy a home that is smart for the environment AND for their own future.  They can future-proof their energy needs AND their finances. We hope this newsletter helps inform homebuyers about the benefits of NZE.

We've designed, tested, certified, accredited, calculated, permitted and documented all the moving parts of that simple formula.    We've found that making a home into a high-performance NZE home adds about 10% to the cost.  But the financial benefits are so far beyond that.       

The Homes as Listed On Zillow

• 3607 Gradyville Road, Newtown Square, PA 19073

• 3609 Gradyville Road, Newtown Square, PA 19073

For a deeper dive into how we’ve achieved Net Zero Energy status, link here

*** Five years ago, in June of 2018, the U.S. Conference of Mayors unanimously adopted a resolution to urge mayors to adopt the IECC as a strategy toward net zero building construction by 2050.

The International Code Council, which writes the PA, NJ, and Del building codes does not even plan on mentioning NZE standards or incentivizing super-high-performance homes until its 2030 Code. While that seems like only six years off, Pennsylvania is currently using a seven-year-old ICC’s 2018 Residential Code.

** The HERS Index and the methods to assure it are going to be introduced in 2024 building codes, though not a requirement.