Would YOU Pay More?

[BobSch]

Another point: When they talk about adding 10K to the COST. Is that the contractor's cost or your (the buyer's) cost?

[jackellis]

For me it would be neither. I would just go find an existing house that had what I wanted that didn't cost me the extra $10K.

Noted! We don't want to hear any complaints about the size of your heating and cooling bills either

I guess I'm as irrational as the next person. I've built a tight, well-insulated home and I drive a relatively fuel efficient pickup but then every once in a while I go from place to place in a gas guzzler with wings

[bruce hylton]

My home is fairly easy to heat. I use electric wall heaters. 7000 watts total for 1280 sq. feet. I put in the septic system, hired the well done, set the forms and poured the concrete . I even went so far as to design the floor plan, and everything I thought I wanted before hiring a professional to do [acceptable to the county] the detailed drawings and comps for me. I sawed the majority of the lumber myself, from my own trees, and on my own property. I did the wiring, the plumbing[twice], hung the sheetrock and only hired the final finish done. I put on most of the siding my way and built cabinets to a usable point [no fronts], layed the tile floors that act as heat sink in the winter and a cool spot in the summer. No air conditioner needed. All this before I ran out of money and energy. I have lived in this unfinished state for 8 years and love it. My total electric bill for a year is about $1200 plus or minus a $100 depending on the weather. I am looking for ways to reduce my expense all the time and there is no way that the government can come up with anything that will not cost me more in the long run....

[Tom Slick]

I'll toss out some numbers for the sake of conversation. I know that most homeowners don't think of costs this way but I like numbers.

let's say you have a new 30yr loan for $200,000 at 5%, 1.25% property tax, no PMI.
monthly payment: $1,281
Total paid on loan at end: $461,511
total interest paid: $130,262

same situation for $10,000 more
monthly payment: $1,346
Total paid on loan at end: $484,587
Total interest paid: $143,337

Difference in monthly payment: $65
Difference in interest paid: $23,076

so the $10,000 up front actually costs you $33,076. If these improvements could save an average of $65 a month or more it would be a good deal. If you have hot summers and cold winters it seems that the $65/mo could be saved easily.

I have found that energy efficient building materials are usually higher quality and result in less repair/replacements during a given length of time.

I'd make the investment. In fact while remolding my current home I usually choose the more efficient/higher durability/higher cost materials

[Ed62]

Difference in monthly payment: $65
Difference in interest paid: $23,076

so the $10,000 up front actually costs you $33,076. If these improvements could save an average of $65 a month or more it would be a good deal. If you have hot summers and cold winters it seems that the $65/mo could be saved easily.

You could also knock a little off the $65.00 per month difference when you figure income tax savings by itemizing, using the interest paid on the loan. There are a lot of things to consider. There could also be other tax breaks for someone buying an energy efficient home. It would probably be a good deal for most people, in my opinion.

Ed

[gerti]

If I were going to keep the house for a long time then the extra 10K would be reasonable. If I were planning on moving in the next 3-5 years, no way.

Unless that next house is built to the same standard.

We can't forget the environmental effect. The discussion reminds me a bit of the becoming mandatory energy saving light bulbs.

Too many builders are starting to sound and act like the banks did, the pride in a well built house was replaced by the need to minimize cost and maximize profit, no matter who it will hurt in the long run.

Anyway I would not want to make a decision on this without more details. Some government mandates make sense and help the consumers in the long run. Others turn out to be narrow-minded or based in politics more than sense.

[thrytis]

Providing the 10k in energy efficiency really is worth while improvements, i wouldn't think twice about spending 10k extra, and i'm not talking about 10k on a 400k+ house. Even if it looked like the investment would just break even, i would do itl since there is a pretty good chance that energy prices are going to continue to rise.

I would be concerned that the energy savings is implemented correctly though. I'm sure my house technically meets the energy requirements at the time with the proper amount of insulation, but it isn't getting anywhere near the full potential due to the poor job it was installed.