NAHB v. LEED-H--The Battle For Homeowners
In my post about my experiences at Greenbuild, I blogged:
NAHB is going after LEED-H in a big way. A new, more robust NAHB green standard for residential should be out shortly which will give LEED-H a run for its money.
At Greenbuild I spent a long time talking to representatives of the National Association of Home Builders, NAHB, about their standard for green residential home building--NAHBGreen. NAHBGreen competes directly with the USGBC's newly minted LEED product for residential buildings, LEED For Homes or LEED-H.
Both programs have a similar structure. Both programs have a point based system which allocates points for site selection, resource conservation, energy efficiency, water efficiency, indoor environmental quality and homeowner education.
As currently developed, residential buildings following LEED-H will probably be "greener." LEED-H has a component for "Location and Linkages", which includes proximity to transit, infill development, adjacency to open space and access to community resources like shopping, etc. LEED-H has prerequisites which mandate minimum requirements for durability, material efficiency, erosion controls and other components.
However, in talking with the NAHB representatives at Greenbuild, I found out that NAHB is doing several things to enhance the NAHBGreen product. They are working with ANSI the standards body, to certify the NAHBGreen standard. The ANSI-certified new NAHB standard is going to have stricter requirements for energy efficiency and other green components. Finally, the registration and verification cost for becoming NAHBGreen certified will be much less than LEED-H. In short, the new NAHBGreen is seeking to compete with LEED-H both on quality and on price.
It remains to be seen what the new NAHBGreen will look like, but if it is equally robust and at a lower cost, it will likely give LEED-H a run for its money.
Shari focuses on energy, environmental and building code policy, representing international companies, non-profits and trade associations in their policy and communications campaigns
I wonder if NAHB will require a verification system. What little I understand about LEED H is that the house is checked to make sure it is an energy star house too. When I built my energy star house four years ago, someone came out to check for a couple of times for certain pre-reqs then blower door, and manual Js numbers had to be submitted for energy efficiency, etc. This was before LEED-H was established.
Will NAHBGreen require less paperwork? Also, I wonder how they stand on the urea-formaldehyde issue.
Great piece and great new look. The NAHB program is gaining steam and will only improve with the revised ANSI standard, due to release early 2009.
In reference to Anna's questions, like LEED-H, NAHBGreen requires 3 party verification of features in the home as well as energy testing for certification. The new standards will require Energy Star as well, but under the current you can't really do it with achieving Energy Star. The current standard provides additional points for eliminating Urea-formaldehyde from construction materials.
Several weeks ago, I was asked by the NAHB to review the new standard and scoring tool. There are great things coming. They have added a number of mandatory items, but still allow room for a builder to choice the features most important to their individual buyer type. As a builder, it is also much easier to offer options, green or otherwise, to consumers through NAHB. Overall, testing and verification together with upgrades can be 50-75% less than the cost to of a LEED-H home.
Exciting times ahead and competition between two standards organizations. I look forward to watching this unfold.
From my view of being part of the NAHB and my local chapter. I see the NAHB trying to get Green Building more widely excepted. To many were not willing to go through with the expense and hassle of the LEED certification. If the the NAHB and the local chapters help drive this instead of a out sourcing group like LEED then I think more builders will get on board.
3rd party verification is important, but the bar for becoming a verifier is not particularly high. Having seen the way so many builders treat building inspectors and consultants, I can imagine what will happen to some kid with 12 hours of green building training and a half day course, which appears to be the minimum requirement. The verifier needs to take a gun to this knife fight, and is armed with a spoon.
It's true, the verifier will be required to not only fully understand the elements of the NAHBGreen program, I am a verifier and understand it well, but also should carry a clear vision of the intent, be well rounded in green construction application and be an educator. The final word, with respect to certification, is in the hands of the NAHB Research Center. The verifier does what the name implies. Verify.
With respect to construction of the building envelope, one of the most important aspects of building science, the NAHBGreen program requires a home to pass a blower door performance test for certification consideration. There are numerous other mandatory requirements.
The program is open to the public and I encourage anyone and everyone to visit www.nahbgreen.org and "score" a home.
My wife and I have been building a new home since June, 2008. We have included many energy saving improvements that meet energy saving criteria for tax credits, but since we are serving as our own contractors, we apparently cannot apply for the credits. This seems irregular and biased in favor of construction firms. Has anyone challenged or are there work-arounds that would qualify us for these tax credits? We would qualify for roof, windows and skylights and some appliance credits.
Thank you.
to greenbuildinginspector... you are incorrect ... please check your facts
your quote
"NAHBGreen program requires a home to pass a blower door performance test"
NOT true. nahb gives you points for doing this. ICC-700 was specifically designed without requiring performance testing. actually the entry point of nahb's multi level program is basically a code building.
performance testing is a requirement in LEED for Homes
BIG difference between the two programs
Shari,
Do all local and state governments have green best mgmt. practices legislation passed and do we have overseers in the infra-structure and federal building retrofits programs? Do we have enough people making sure the locals are trained to identify and mandate proper pratices in those above mentioned areas. I am aware of NAHB and LEED for residential use. I just finished a week long (40 hour) course in Energy Residential Auditing and Inspection. My concern is for the larger projects? Is the DOT responsible for such inspections?
Shari,
Do all local and state governments have green best mgmt. practices legislation passed and do we have overseers in the infra-structure and federal building retrofits programs? Do we have enough people making sure the locals are trained to identify and mandate proper pratices in those above mentioned areas. I am aware of NAHB and LEED for residential use. I just finished a week long (40 hour) course in Energy Residential Auditing and Inspection. My concern is for the larger projects? Is the DOT responsible for such inspections?