7 minute read
Net Zero Homes
BY MELANIE ROBITAILLE, SR. STAFF WRITER & GRAPHIC DESIGNER
When a home uses resources and is the only thing between you and the elements, the argument that real estate and the environment have nothing in common goes right out the window. And with climate portrayals seemingly on a clock these days the world is taking action that will forever change the real estate sector and the dwellings in which we live.
The Race to Zero is the movement responsible for countries, businesses, and educational institutions around the world coming together and making commitments to reduce greenhouse gases by the year 2050, an endeavour initiated by the Paris Agreement during the 2015 UN Climate Change Conference (COP21). The measures being taken differ across the globe, but the Net Zero Homes and Communities program in Canada, or Zero Energy Homes program in the U.S. are just two of several actions being taken by governments in the North American backyard.
Both invite a host of builders and innovators to bring their ingenuity to bear in the sector, as well as provide funding for homeowners interested in eco retrofitting properties in Canada or the United States. These homes already exist, they have already begun hitting markets, and will soon be the norm.
Understanding this, agents Jim Smardon of EXIT Realty Metro in Nova Scotia, and Deloar Khan of EXIT Family Realty in New York, decided to take their own action. Living green is something they both practice and obtaining The National Association of REALTOR’s® (NAR) Green designation was something they both knew they could leverage to carve out a niche for themselves in their respective markets.
“As real estate professionals we have to be educated and update ourselves to serve our clients better in the future,” Deloar explained. “I found the course very valuable as I’ve learned a lot and I’m able to connect with likeminded people and have access to sustainable products and resources to help my clients. I can easily separate myself from most of the agents in my market.”
Fifty-six percent of respondents in NAR®’s 2022 REALTORS® and Sustainability Report didn’t know whether their respective MLS's® had green data entry fields, yet 63% believe there is some value in promoting the energy efficiency of a property. Half reported they were directly part of a transaction with green features in the past 12 months, but data was muddy on a green property’s perceived time on market. Further still, over half were unsure of how the dollar value of high-performance properties stacked up against other similar homes.
The report also states that 51% of those surveyed found that consumers were somewhat or very interested in sustainability, and Deloar believes he’s in the perfect industry to help build eco awareness saying, “While I’m doing seller or buyer consultations – from the beginning I let them know that I have a green designation. I help homeowners by advising them on green practices, using smart technology, energy efficient products, and renewable energy. Real estate professionals are directly working with homeowners (the consumer) and are involved in the community, so they’re perfectly poised to do so.”
Deloar is currently working on his Energy Auditor/Advisor certification as a way to confidently offer his clients more value through their homes with things like solar power, a renewable energy source that’s grown increasingly popular in the residential market according to NAR’s® report. Retrofits are a sort of specialty of Jim’s as well. Like many agents, he often gets questions from sellers on how they can get the most for their home, or buyers wondering how they can get the home they want and be able to afford it.
—JIM SMARDON, SALES REP.
“Most of the time the answer to both of these questions is tied to eco-fitting your home or purchasing one that has already had that done,” he explained. “I will always suggest getting an efficiency audit done to homes, to see exactly where the home is or would be costing the client money and what initiatives are in place to help remedy those issues.”
Unlike New York, where plans are in place to build two million climate-friendly homes by 2030, Jim says his East Coast market has been slower to adopt eco-minded projects; in fact he was the first Green certified REALTOR® on the East Coast.
"Unfortunately, green homes or green retrofits are a relatively new concept here. The upfront cost tends to be the main issue or worry for people and not everyone can afford to access the long-term benefits,” he said, admitting that energy audits are at least more common now. “They give a house an energy score and allow people to make their homes as green as possible at their own speed.”
Where he wishes he’d see a faster pace is on the building code side, awaiting the day when new builds will be required to have a certain percentage of green or energy efficient components upon completion. Despite the many federal and provincial programs, he says there’s still a public disconnect in Canada.
—DELOAR KHAN, SALES REP.
“It’s great to see but I think programs need to be easier to access and quicker to payout. So much participation is lost due to confusion on all sides. But hopefully these programs will lead to a new norm of what’s to be expected when you walk into a house to sell it. Kind of the way it’s more common to see a dishwasher in a home now than not.”
The irony of being a REALTOR® and the effects of current development practices on the environment is not lost on Jim, in fact it fuels his passion that much more because he believes the answers can be found within this industry saying, “The norm seems to be mass clear cutting for neighborhoods, increasing urban sprawl when we should be increasing urban density instead. When permits and approvals are given out, there should be more focus on maintaining a natural green space of old growth trees, rather than just trying to replant. Also, when a new development has been approved, plans should maximize renewable energy usage. Repurposing and retrofitting older neighborhoods would be a far more efficient way forward and cause far less of an environmental impact.” He would also love to see governments incentivizing rainwater catchment and greywater systems.
Not only ahead of the rest, these two EXIT agents are a pivotal part of a powerful trickledown effect. They do their best to inform and support clients who in turn want to do their best to reduce their footprint, proving that each of us plays a small part in making big changes in the environmental impact our need for housing creates.
NET ZERO NEAR YOU
CANADA
The R-2000 Net Zero Energy Pilot was launched in 2013, making way for a Natural Resources Canada ratings system for net zero energy homes. Look at the resulting 23 homes built by six different builders by the end of 2016.
UNITED STATES
To view homes across the U.S. that are also working toward Zero Energy, you can visit the Department of Energy’s website online, and search based on state/climate at https://www.energy.gov/eere/ buildings/doe-tour-zero.
