Landsea Homes in Austin Featured as RESNET Builder of the Month
An award-winning homebuilder that builds suburban, single-family detached and attached homes, mid-and high-rise properties, and master-planned communities, Landsea Homes is known for creating inspired places that reflect modern living and provide homebuyers the opportunity to “Live in Your Element.” Our homes allow people to live where they want to live, how they want to live – in a home created especially for them.
In this feature, RESNET asked Landsea Homes Austin Division’s Chris Warr, Vice President of Purchasing, and Andy Lee, Vice President of Sales & Marketing to share some insight on building HERS® homes for their customers in Austin.
Q: What is special about a HERS Rated home?
A: Chris: A HERS-rated home has been thoroughly inspected by an independent third-party rating firm accredited by RESNET, a recognized national standards-making body for building energy efficiency rating and certification systems. Each HERS home carries a rating that allows for easy comparisons of the energy efficiency a consumer can expect from their home purchase. A HERS rating on a home tells you that the homebuilder takes their commitment to enhanced building performance very seriously.
Q: Why should consumers ask for the HERS® Index Score on homes they are shopping for?
A: Chris: Asking for the HERS Index Score during the shopping process allows a buyer to readily compare the energy efficiency of the various homes under consideration. Much like checking the MPG rating on a vehicle, the lower the HERS score, the lower the cost to run the home will be. When considering monthly mortgage payments for example, taking a lower energy bill into consideration can impact the decision-making process. Consumers should also ask for the HERS score for the peace of mind of knowing that the homebuilder takes great care in bringing quality to everything they do.
Q: Why does Landsea Homes choose to have their homes HERS® Rated?
A: Chris: Landsea Homes truly embraces its mission to bring sustainable High Performance Homes to every buyer. The HERS rating is just one way that we can publicly demonstrate this commitment to our customers, our industry, and our planet
Q: Why consumers should expect energy-efficient homes?
A: Chris: Aside from the obvious cost savings associated with owning and running a highly efficient home, we believe that homeowners should feel good about contributing to lower demand on our energy infrastructure platforms and reducing their carbon footprint. Whether it’s energy performance as demonstrated by a HERS rating, or any of the other innovative building practices we employ, Landsea Homes believes in driving continuous improvement in the overall quality of our homes that we feel our customers deserve.
Q: How many homes does Landsea Homes build with HERS® per year?
A: Chris: Every home we build in this market not only carries a HERS rating, but is also fully certified by Energy Star, the EPA’s Indoor AirPLus program, and the Department of Energy’s Zero Energy Ready Home program.
Q: How do you market HERS® Rated homes?
A: Andy: We believe everyone should understand what a HERS rating means to them, especially in a time when affordability is of the utmost importance. We’ve taken an educational approach to our HERS marketing. Our website is where we hope customers will take the first step to exploring HERS, but once they arrive at our sales center, our sales professionals will also help our customers understand the many benefits a HERS-rated home offers. Once a homebuyer selects a home or particular plan, we dive into the score, the savings, the benefits, homebuying power, and more. We reinforce the HERS score on our website, in our take-home collateral, signage, and in our overall marketing approach.
Q: How do your customers feel about HERS® Rated homes?
A: Andy: Landsea Homes customers find great value in our HERS-rated homes, not only at the time of purchase but for years to come. A HERS-rated home means many things to our homebuyers — confidence, affordability, and sustainability.
Q: What rating company do you work with and talk a little about that partnership?
Chris: We work very closely with one of the premier rating firms, Fox Energy Specialists. Their entire team, led by James Rodriguez, collaborates fully with us as we develop new products and specifications to ensure that Landsea Homes remains on the leading edge of energy-efficient building practices in the Austin market. Their field teams take special care with the validation inspections, working closely with our operations team to make sure the energy specifications are carried out properly each time. Fox Energy closes the loop with each home by providing detailed reporting on the inspection, along with the government certifications we earn through successful compliance.
Learn more about great HERS Rated homes in the Austin area here >
View this original feature on the RESNET website here >