Tag Archives: green homes

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In today’s competitive real estate market, home builders and seller are doing everything they can to lure potential buyers. Selling a house based on three bedrooms, two baths and a big back-yard is no longer adequate. Buyers are looking for something extra. This is particularly true among women.

Females are one of the fastest growing home-buying demographic. There are more single women buying homes on their own than ever before.  Also, married women are often making the final decisions in the purchase of a family home.

What Women Want In Their Homes

Most woman and men are looking for similar things in their homes: open layouts, adequate storage, solid counter-tops, etc.  However, there are a few design details that can win the hearts of women that men may overlook. When attracting female home-buyers, keep in mind these 4 S’s:

Secure

Safety is a top issue for women home-buyers. A security system that integrate fire and flood alarms is a definite selling feature.  Other security features include good street and entryway lighting, and security cameras.

Silent

In todays busy world, many of us retreat to our homes for solace from the daily hub-hub of the city.  A serene home can be a huge selling features.  Think of details like: whispering appliances, including quiet dishwashers, garbage disposal and central vacuums. Other silent selling features include sound-muting building materials—particularly in the master suite and laundry. ‘Soft close’ toilet seats are also popular.

Sustainable

While saving money and the planet crosses gender lines, women are particularly attuned to green features in a home.  Big ticket items such as solar panels are a definite draw. But smaller details like sustainable bamboo flooring, low VOC paints and a compost drawer can help to seal the deal.

Sleek

Good design may cross gender lines, but a few sleek storage ideas cater especially to female buyers. In the bathroom these include features like hidden storage in the bathroom for reading materials and feminine products, as well as hairdryer-ready drawers with outlets.  In the rest of the house, built-in storage and organizers such as wall-mounted gift-wrapping stations—will catch many women’s eyes.

Buying a home is a complex and multifaceted decison. There are many factors that lead buyers to one house over another. But these four 4 S’s are near the top of the list for many women home-buyers.  They may just be the factor that turn a prospective buyer into a proud home-owner.

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There are some green homes out there that are … well, way “out there” in terms of design. On the other hand, there are eco-friendly homes that look really cool, which proves that you don’t need to sacrifice style for sustainability.

Home for Life

The above home is a zero-energy home; it was created by Danish architects AART and has been dubbed Home for Life. Here’s what they have to say about this awesome green architecture:

Home for Life is a self-sufficient and CO2-neutral demonstration project and thanks to 7m2 solar collectors, 50m2 solar cells and a solar heat pump the house produces more energy than it consumes. With an energy surplus of 9kWh/m2/year it takes approximately 40 years for the house to generate the same amount of energy that was used to produce its building materials and at that point the house will have returned more to nature than it consumed.

To read more about Home for Life and to see more photos, visit the Dagens Design website.

Low-Impact Home Design

This green home was developed by Case Design & Project Management. Here’s how the architects describe this home:

Situated on a generous, flat, in-city lot, the home features Solar Pre-heating, Radiant Floor Heat, Advanced Framing, Rainwater Harvesting, Cellulose Insulation, Rainscreen siding, and is Close to Public Transit.

To see more stylish green architecture by Case Design, check out their website.

Cliff House

This breathtaking off-grid home was designed by Altius Architecture. To fully appreciate the beauty of this home – without actually visiting the property and seeing it with your own eyes – check out the full description and several photos the Altius Architecture website provides. Here’s a snippet of what they say:

Designed for an off-grid property, this cottage will feature a hybrid wood/solar radiant heating system with propane backup. Evacuated tube solar arrays will fill mass store tanks that feed a hydronic radiant floor system. This system will supplement a passive gain and solar mass strategy. Summer cooling is through solar shading and passive stack effect ventilation. A series of photovoltaic panels provides the buildings on the property with electricity. Large overhangs control the solar gain while green roofs mediate temperatures and control runoff.

Modular Homes

Pre-fab (prefabricated) or modular homes are eco-friendly and cost-effective. To see several photographs of some amazing modular homes, check out our blog post called Coolest Modular Homes from Around the World.

Container Homes

These eco-friendly homes are becoming more and more popular as housing costs rapidly increase and people become increasingly aware of the environmental footprint they’re leaving. Container homes have several benefits, including affordability, durability, sustainability, the ease of expanding and relocating, and the speed of construction. Additionally, container homes don’t need to look scrappy and unattractive; on the contrary, these homes can be impressively designed. Check out our blog post called The Benefits of Container Homes to see some photos and learn more.

More Green Architecture

Have you come across an architect’s website or seen some really cool-looking green homes? Leave a comment to share your findings!