Ben Walsh is building highly efficient, solar-powered homes. But his target market isn’t “greenies.” It’s entry-level buyers who want more for their money.
Walsh is building an 18-home development in Washington County called Sage Green. All of the single-family homes are designed to be “net-zero-energy.” That means they produce enough energy for a family of four to live comfortably. Homeowners get credit on their Portland General Electric bill for any excess power they produce.
Money back for green building
This eye for sustainability isn’t totally new for Walsh. He’s a native Oregonian, and his extended family owns some of Portland’s premier green building companies. Since the early 2000s, he has been building homes that qualify for Earth Advantage and ENERGY STAR® ratings.
In 2005, Walsh learned about a tax credit available for constructing homes that use at least half the energy of an equivalent standard home. In the midst of a project for the local Housing Authority, Walsh learned from Earth Advantage that he was already close to meeting that standard. Twenty of 22 homes he subsequently built qualified. What’s more, they actually cost slightly less to build. “We saved $175 to get a $2,000 credit,” Walsh recalls. “Simple decision.”
Keeping it simple
On that project, as with Sage Green, Walsh took pains not to complicate the construction. “There was an absolute need to control costs,” he says. “That meant not doing anything weird, untried or unknown to my subcontractors.”
Energy-saving measures at Sage Green include:
- Triple-glazed windows
- Heat pumps and heat pump water heaters
- Heat-recovery systems that capture energy from waste air and water, such as from dryers and showers
- A thermal-wall system Walsh is patenting. It places rigid foam between a home’s frame and its plywood shell. The foam sheet cuts heat loss significantly and makes walls dramatically more earthquake-proof.
Not just for progressives
Walsh talks about the social and environmental benefits his homes offer — security against future energy price instability, environmental degradation and foreign oil dependence.
“But I don’t have a political agenda,” he says. “I’m a businessman.” He’s focused on appealing to buyers looking for value. With qualifying tax credits and Energy Trust incentives, Walsh can sell these $300,000 homes for under $260,000. Along with the up-front savings, the homes offer budget-minded buyers something they can appreciate month after month: low energy bills.