Happy Green Homeowners

In case you were holding off on greening your home, here's a little incentive to get greening. According to a recent MarketWatch article, 85 percent of homeowners said they were more satisfied with their new green homes than with their previous, traditionally-built homes. The survey, which was conducted by the National Association of Home Builders and McGraw-Hill Construction, found that homeowners were willing to pay more - up to $18,500 more - for the benefits of a green home, with 50 percent citing concern for the environment as a reason to buy a green home, 50 percent citing their family's health, and 63 percent citing lower operating and maintenance costs.

According to Harvey Bernstein, vice president of industry analytics, alliances and strategic initiatives at McGraw-Hill Construction, "green" homes in this survey had to have three of the five following elements:

• Incorporation of energy-efficient products
• Features that address indoor air quality
• Attention to resource management (including use of recycled materials in building)
• Attention to site management (including the location of the home and its surroundings)
• Increased water efficiency

And, remember, you don't have to buy a new home to go green. According to the study, about half of U.S. homeowners recently renovated their homes, and about 40 percent of them used green products. Energy-efficient windows and doors, as well as energy-efficient heating and air-conditioning systems are some of the most popular green upgrades.

Yes, green homeowners are, for the most part, satisfied with their decision to go green. So what's holding others back? Surprisingly, this report suggests that the biggest obstacle to building or renovating a green home wasn't the extra up-front cost, but rather lack of education and awareness. Hopefully, this blog is helping to remove that obstacle for our wonderful readers!