What makes a house green

I’ll be buying a house in a couple of years, and I want to make sure it’s “green”, as in sustainable. Not just for the environment, but for my own savings. I may have much choice when it comes to the building materials used since I don’t plan on building a new home. For example, I may not be able to afford replacing all the existing windows with double-paned ones. But there will be plenty of other smart choices I can make.

Size matters – keep it small. I’ll go with the smallest house I feel comfortable in. No matter what else you do, having less house always makes it easier to be green and save money. I won’t get lured into thinking that because I can afford something luxuriously big, I must buy it. I’m not going to live in a closet, either (assuming I can afford bigger than a closet). I’m just not going to buy something with a living room and den, for example, because I just don’t need it.
Look for good insulation. Take a look at the attic or crawlspace – anywhere you can see the type of insulation used in the home. A realtor or friend who knows construction can help you identify how good it is. A well-insulated home will save you significantly on heating and cooling. A really well-insulated home will be practically soundproof, which saves even more and is a great benefit if you’re a light sleeper. Also, look for good carpet padding. This actually factors into the overall insulation
- not to mention nice padding can make even a cheap carpet feel wonderful under your feet for years and years.

Look for plumbing and other repairs. Even the least green plumbing system can become a lot less green when it’s not working like it’s supposed to. For the past few years in hot markets, buyers haven’t always had time to check homes thoroughly before committing (since flippers were writing downpayment checks on the spot without checking anything and a shortage of housing means you take the first thing you can snatch up). By waiting until it’s more of a buyer’s market, I increase my chances of making a really informed decision. If the home needs repairs, I also have a better chance of getting the owners to work something out with me at their cost so I can afford to make those repairs.

Look for watermarks and other signs of dampness and mold. Not only does this likely mean a water wasting problem, mold can be seriously damaging to your health.

Find out how recent the wiring is. The newer it is, the more likely it is to save energy – not to mention handle today’s amounts of chargers and electronics without blowing fuses. Again, if the wiring isn’t up to code, this is something I could use to bargain the price down.

In addition to making sure the house is as green as I can get it, there are a lot of other things I can check to avoid being ripped off.

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