The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recently reached a milestone for the ENERGY STAR program by passing the 1 millionth ENERGY STAR-qualified home mark. Since the program began labeling new homes in 1995, Americans have saved $1.2 billion on their energy bills, and reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 22 billion pounds, according to EPA.
To earn the Energy Star label, a home must meet strict energy efficiency guidelines, which can be achieved through established, reliable building techniques available to most middle-class American homeowners. Those include high-efficiency lighting and appliances, effective insulation systems, high-performance windows, tight construction and ducts and efficient heating and cooling equipment. In addition, an independent home energy rater conducts onsite testing and inspections to verify that the home’s performance meets ENERGY STAR requirements.
There are more than 6,500 builders across the nation building homes that earn the ENERGY STAR label and qualified new homes can be found in every state in the country. The top 20 markets for ENERGY STAR-qualified homes built to date include: Houston, TX; Dallas, TX; Las Vegas, NV; Phoenix, AZ; Greater Los Angeles, CA; New York, NY; Tucson, AZ; San Antonio, TX; Sacramento, CA; San Diego, CA; Columbus, OH; Des Moines, IA; Indianapolis, IN; Austin, TX; Philadelphia, PA; San Francisco, CA; Boston, MA; Denver, CO; Orlando, FL; and Oklahoma City, OK.
Click here for more information.
You must be logged in to post a comment.