Green Homes: No Longer Just A Real Estate Fad

Green homes are eco-friendly homes that are energy efficient and use ecological design and sustainable resources. There has been a tremendous increase in awareness of the benefits of green building in America among builders and home owners alike. With home builders finding it easier to construct green homes, the number of green homes constructed throughout the country has gone up remarkably.

Ecological concerns and the increasing awareness of the advantages of green homes have led to an upsurge in green homes in the country. Concerns about the impact their homes have on the environment have prompted some homebuyers to opt for green homes.

Building green homes is no longer a remote concept these days. Over disturbing facts about global warming and indoor air pollution, today, the top priority of the National Home Builders Association and the American Institute of Architects is constructing green buildings.

There is sufficient data around that indicate that the building of green homes is on the rise. According to the figures provided by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) (who developed the LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) green building rating system), the number of buildings with LEED status in America has increased from 38 in 2002 to 669 now. Green buildings are progressively entering the mainstream with more and more buildings getting LEED certification.

Given that green buildings do not cost very much more than traditional buildings, and that they actually reduce energy bills, the building of green homes is on the rise. A green building is not only less expensive to live in but also spikes in value by 7.5 percent on average and improves return on investment by 6.6 percent on average.

Green building concepts begin to rise everywhere as the number of individuals who want to remodel, build or buy green homes are rapidly increasing. Architects and developers are responding to satisfy this growing demand. Green buildings have been found to appreciate faster than traditional buildings.

What was once a patchwork of green buildings in several cities has now increased to encompass whole communities and neighborhoods. According to a McGraw-Hill Construction survey in 2006, about two-thirds of builders would be building green homes in America this year. Green buildings are firmly mainstream now with federal government and 15 states requiring new public buildings to meet the LEED standards. In fact, four U.S. states and 17 cities offer incentives for private buildings built to LEED standards.

With rising government initiatives, consumer interest and the number of green developers and builders, the green building revolution is all set to go to a new level.