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Two weeks ago I wrote an article entitled Don’t Buy a Home Until You’re Ready. The article was based on my family’s experience buying our current home over two years ago at the height of the housing boom. Even as home values have significantly dropped since our closing date, I can honestly say we have no financial regrets over our decision to buy when we did.
In that article, there was one final question that I failed to ask:
What would the energy profile of our home be, and what can we do to make it better?
Looking back on our decision to build our home, I regret not researching advanced building and heating systems such as geothermal heat pumps, and insulated concrete form (ICF) construction. The upfront costs of our home may have been slightly more, but the energy savings and piece of mind would more than pay us back in just a few years.
An energy profile goes beyond looking at the yearly expense of heating, and cooling your home. It takes into consideration how easily your home can be adapted to new energy efficient technologies such as solar heating panels, and geothermal heat pumps, or improved windows and insulation material.
An energy profile also assess the property that your home sits on to determine if a shady tree planted in the front yard might offer reduced cooling requirements in warmer months for instance, or how if it’s orientation to the sun would be appropriate for the installation of a solar hot water system.
Chances are good that your state offers free, or reduced rate energy audits of your home that can help you determine the energy profile of your home. If you are buying a new home, it is well worth the $200-300 to hire a home energy auditor to evaluate the home for any major deficiencies in energy use.
Most home inspectors do not have the training, nor the equipment to make a proper assessment of a homes energy profile.
In today’s housing market, you may be able to have the seller of the home pay for some energy efficiency improvements as a condition of the sale.
Even if you don’t care so much about improving the energy profile of your home, there may be a point in the future in which you may, and it will certainly become a factor further down the road if you decide to sell your home.
If you are serious about reducing the amount of energy that your home uses, my article on 36 ways to reduce your home’s energy use is a great place to start.
