Inland Northwest new-home buyers, especially those moving here from other metropolitan areas, are starting to ask home builders for greener homes.


Their requests have been heard by enough contractors that the Spokane Home Builders Association (SHBA), in partnership with Avista Corp., is developing an Inland Northwest BuiltGreen program.


People are starting to look for green products, says Paul Warfield, spokesman for SHBA, a trade association with more than 1,000 members.


BuiltGreen originally was launched in the Denver metropolitan area in 1995.


In Washington state, the Master Builders Association, of King and Snohomish counties, was one of the first adopters of the program. It has since spread throughout the state to several chapters that cover at least 25 of Washingtons 39 counties, including the seven counties involved in the Inland Northwest BuiltGreen program, which is being developed.


SHBA is starting its BuiltGreen program here as a pilot project, with two builders who have projects under way or completed. Nine other Inland Northwest builders have committed to participate starting next spring, and SHBA expects to expand the program soon to encourage more builder participation for the 2008 building season, Warfield says.


The BuiltGreen concept is that homes should be built to be energy efficient and environmentally friendly. Contractors who want the homes they build to be certified for proof of green must meet certain standards.


People not only know about it, but expect it, says Corey Condron, vice president of high-volume Spokane home builder Condron Construction Inc., which is one of the two builders that has done a BuiltGreen home here. I think it will generate more sales.


Condron, Warfield, and others say buyers increasingly now understand the financial benefits of having a home built to BuiltGreen standards.


An investment in a more energy-efficient house, for instance, can lead to savings of 15 percent to 30 percent in energy costs compared with those in a standard home, builders here say. The BuiltGreen program incorporates the Energy Star certification guidelines, which were developed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Energy.


Still, energy efficiency is just one of four components of the BuiltGreen program. The other three, which are still being fine-tuned for the Inland Northwest market, include indoor air quality, materials and recycling, and site preparation, Warfield says.


The site-preparation piece will focus on curbing water usage, erosion, and site disturbance. The materials-and-recycling component will emphasize the use of locally made materials, recycling, and waste reduction. The indoor-air component will focus on air exchange and filtration systems and reduction of materials made with formaldehyde or other toxins.


SHBA is developing the local checklists for those components, based on programs in Western Washington, where the number of BuiltGreen-certified homes constructed annually rose from fewer than 200 homes in 2000 to nearly 5,000 homes in 2006.


Warfield says some buyers coming from Western Washington, Oregon, and California are aware of BuiltGreen programs and are asking about them here.


Condron Construction, which builds homes priced from $185,000 to about $450,000, is participating in the pilot project here. The home builder received BuiltGreen certification for a house in the Eagle Ridge development it built for a Childrens Miracle Network fundraiser. Proceeds from the sale of the home, which is listed at $364,500, will go to the nonprofit.


Condron says he welcomes the BuiltGreen program.


Were just waiting for the Eastern Washington standards, he says.


Condron Construction announced in June that all of its houses now are built to Energy Star standards, and that it believes its one of the first volume home builders in the Inland Northwest to get such certification for all of its homes.


As the market for sales of new homes cools, following the hot pace of recent years, the company is absorbing the costs of more energy-efficient upgrades as an incentive to potential home buyers, Condron says.


Even when we have to start raising prices, its going to be an easy sell, he says. If you can take $30 to $40 a month off the utility bill, it doesnt take long to recover the cost and realize a gain for the life of the home.


Some of the items that improve energy efficiency are: furnaces with efficiency ratings of 90 percent or greater, windows that guard against solar gain and heat loss, insulation in walls and ceilings with higher performance values than are required by code, high-efficiency water heaters, sealed heating and ventilation ducts, and energy Star certified lighting and appliances.


Craftsman Homes Northwest Inc., of Spokane, is adopting the Inland Northwest BuiltGreen program for three homes it is building, including two on Hangman Valley Road.


The program goes beyond efficiency and conservation standards set by building codes, says James Pelland, whos with Craftsman Homes Northwest.


Code requirements arent near whats possible by paying a little more money to meet even higher standards, Pelland says.


He says high-efficiency measures add about 1 percent to the cost of houses built by Craftsman Homes Northwest, which typically sell for $400,000 to $700,000, not including land. Craftsman Homes Northwest is the other builder here that has constructed a BuiltGreen home.


The company uses blown-in glass fiber insulation rather than standard rolled-batt insulation.


Blown-in insulation fills voids completely and costs about $2,000 more per home, Pelland says.


The company installs another type of blown-in insulation, which is made from recycled newspaper, to improve efficiency in ceilings and attics.


Craftsman Homes Northwest also is installing tankless hot-water systems, which heat water on demand. A conventional hot water tank uses a lot of energy and operates 24 hours a day, even when no ones using hot water, Pelland says.


With a tankless, on-demand system, youre never heating water when its not needed, he says.


The company also puts compact fluorescent light bulbs in high-use areas.


Conventional bulbs produce 90 percent heat and 10 percent light, while compact fluorescent bulbs produce 90 percent light and 10 percent heat, Pelland says.


Pelland says the energy savings that home owners will reap in a BuiltGreen home in a matter of just a few years will make up for the extra cost of complying with the program.


In addition to energy efficiency, Craftsman Homes Northwest is focusing on indoor air quality, as part of its BuiltGreen certification.


Pelland says the company uses formaldehyde-free products when possible, installs carpets certified to have reduced fumes compared with standard carpets, and employs a timed ventilation system that regularly purges indoor air.


SHBAs Warfield says the materials-and-recycling component of Inland Northwest BuiltGreen, for which a point system is still being developed, will encourage builders to re-use or recycle surplus materials, or ensure that they are properly disposed of. It also will encourage builders to use locally made and environmentally friendly materials.


Builders also will receive points for constructing sorting areas, which typically would be inside a garage, to encourage home buyers to participate in recycling programs, he says.


The site-preparation component of the BuiltGreen program will include a point system that will encourage builders to minimize site disturbance and retain natural habitats and features as they build, Warfield says. Builders also will receive points for optimal solar orientation, which takes advantage of natural lighting and, in turn, helps reduce energy needs.


While the BuiltGreen program is designed to reduce demand on natural resources and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, Pelland says energy savings are getting the most attention for local buyers.


Im hearing anecdotal evidence that the technology results in lower energy bills for some large houses than for some smaller, older houses that dont have it, he says. Its going to make more of a difference than downsizing from an SUV to a hybrid vehicle.


Contact Mike McLean at (509) 344-1266 or via e-mail at mikem@spokanejournal.com.