The Path to Zero-Carbon Living

Provide the next generation of home buyers with the tools and knowledge to lower their carbon footprint, and you’ll win their business and their respect.

Younger homebuyers tend to take their environmental impacts seriously. Our surveys and focus groups suggest that when people in their 20s, 30s or even 40s (the latter end of the Millennial generation) build or buy a home, they’re especially open to choices that can reduce their CO₂ contribution.

To reach them, you’ll need to understand their worldview. Most of them are well aware that on a per capita basis, the United States has one of the world’s highest rates of carbon emissions. Millennials perceive this pollution inequity as something they would like to change, given the tools to do so. Globally, the average carbon footprint per person is about 4 tons per year, according to the Nature Conservancy, a global environmental organization headquartered in Arlington, Va. We’re a huge part of that total: In the U.S., the average carbon footprint for an individual is 16 tons, the association notes. 

The global consensus is that this level of CO₂ pollution is unsustainable. The latest extreme weather events worldwide reinforce this conclusion. According to the Nature Conservancy, the average global carbon footprint for individuals needs to decrease to less than two tons by 2050 in order to avoid a 2 degree rise in global temperatures (80 percent of climate scientists, in a recent survey, believe we won’t be able to avoid a 2.5 degree rise at this point). 

Achieving the less-than-2 ton output will require reducing per capita carbon pollution to one-eighth of its current rate. This shocking goalpost is daunting, even to younger homebuyers, but offering them housing that gets them much of the way there has instant appeal.

A Place to Start

An easy way to begin any net-zero conversation with a client is with a self diagnosis. Several carbon footprint calculators are available online to help clients conduct a carbon footprint “weight check” first and estimate how much they contribute to greenhouse gas emissions. Options include the Earth Hero app, the Klima app and the Commons app.

Online carbon footprint calculators, such as these from Earth Hero, Klima and Commons, can help clients estimate how much they contribute to greenhouse gas emissions.

Most of these apps and algorithms will offer suggestions of how to lower carbon emissions, such as riding a bike instead of driving, adjusting a home thermostat, or installing solar panels. (Note how building science and home life have a role in nearly all of the “big ticket” pollution sources.) Whether it’s a home’s location, siting, type of HVAC, or insulation level, it’s all going to affect the buyer’s long-term CO₂ trail. 

Although they are just getting started, younger generations show a greater interest in whether appliances they buy are energy efficient. Thus far, more than half say “yes.” Source: COGNITION Smart Data

From Principles to Products

It’s sometimes best to approach emissions reduction in homes from a hands-on or “cause and effect” perspective. Rather than jump right in and suggest an upgrade to an 18 SEER HVAC system, for instance, talk about the impact of some specific behaviors at home that affect CO₂ emissions:

• Present heating and cooling scenarios. For example, explain how in most existing homes, lowering the temperature by 8 degrees in winter can save about 0.17 tons of carbon emissions annually. Increasing the temperature (to reduce cooling) by that same amount in summer can save about 0.21 tons of carbon emissions. Then, you can expand the conversations into how much larger that reduction can be with high efficiency heat pumps and better insulation.
• Compare old versus new tech. Note, for instance, how ENERGY STAR refrigerator save about 0.5 tons of carbon emissions annually over old models, and the most modern ones are even better. Whirlpool’s SlimTech Insulation Technology , for example, makes refrigerators up to 50 percent more energy efficient. The vacuum-insulated structure technology is a step up from traditional polyurethane foam insulation because it reduces thermal conductivity. Temperature swings from door openings are less volatile, because the insulation allows for e-cooling that is up to 30 percent faster. 
• Connect CO₂ to real life. As one example, a homeowner who does 100 loads of laundry per year can save 500 pounds of carbon emissions annually by using cold water instead of heated water (according to ColdWaterSaves.org ). You can use facts like these to show how behavior matters, then segue into the fact that technology does, too. The combination of Energy Star dishwashers and clothes washers with low-flow faucets and shower heads results in a direct reduction in CO₂ pollution. Prospective buyers can take those savings even further if they opt for hybrid heat pump water heaters instead of conventional products.
• Encourage alternative power. Transferring electricity purchases to a 100 percent green energy provider can save 3.76 tons of carbon emissions annually for a 1,300-square-foot home (depending on average electricity usage). Solar panel installation, particularly on all-electric homes, cuts fossil fuels out of day-to-day energy for the house and shifts pollution away from any electric vehicles that are tapping inefficient grid energy.
• Conscious waste management. Most homes generate 0.5 cubic yards of waste each week. If the buyers can reduce that by half, they cut a full ton of CO₂ pollution from their portfolio. One way builders can assist this is to provide for food waste composting and recycling systems in the home. Of course, much of this waste depends on the buyer’s buy-in. They have to actively seek out lighter packaging and shop more carefully.  Approximately 30 percent of food in the U.S. is wasted. But many new refrigerators include better food storage options, such as crisper drawers for fruits and vegetables that reduce food waste.
• Zoom in on transportation. No matter how well a home performs, commuting in a car or flying in airplanes can blow up the owner’s efforts to cut back on emissions. Many new homeowners are well intentioned, but not fully informed. For example, in our research, “driving an EV” comes up very high on the list of actions young buyers are taking to reduce CO₂ pollution. They’re aware that getting around is a big carbon creator. But they may not realize that electric vehicle (EV) travel comes with certain caveats. It’s not an automatic CO₂ reducer. An EV purchase is also probably not the most important behavior choice a buyer can make. Where they build, how they work and how frequently they venture out typically have the largest impacts.
• Building close to things. If your client has flexibility in where to build, the site location matters immensely in the CO₂ game. Talking about bike paths and mass transit is pointless if the location for the home has no bike-friendly infrastructure or bus routes. Keep the daily commute close to work, grocery stores, and other destinations and the CO₂ impact drops dramatically. If you can’t convince them with an eco-conscious angle, talk about quality of life. It reduces CO₂ from travel, and it gives back precious time in their day.
• Switching from a gas guzzler. Driving an SUV 10,000 miles per year that gets 22 miles per gallon is an inefficient, polluting way to get around. Simply by switching to a sedan that gets 32 miles per gallon, the buyer will cut 2.19 tons of greenhouse gas emissions annually. In other words, even if a client is not ready to drive an EV, they can make simple changes in their vehicle type and achieve a major cutback on CO₂.
• Buying an electric vehicle. On the other hand, trading in that 22-mile-per-gallon SUV for an electric vehicle could save nearly 7 tons of greenhouse gas emissions annually. This halo effect is a bit overstated, however. Because there’s so much pollution created in battery manufacturing for these vehicles, one Harvard study has suggested the cars may not achieve any CO₂ reduction until they have been driven 28,600 miles or more. Owners have to keep these cars for a long time to get a carbon emissions reduction. Also, the overall CO₂ impact of EVs depends on the electricity source and other details. 
• Charging smart. Recharging an EV with “dirty” energy from a grid powered by a nearby coal-powered plant, for example, will reduce its CO₂ savings. Recharging it from solar panels on the roof or a solar field nearby offers a more-reliable cut in pollution.
• Telecommuting is best. You probably don’t need to remind clients that telecommuting is the “greenest” option if it reduces road time. If they normally drive a combustion vehicle 40 miles roundtrip to work each day, they will save nearly 1 ton of carbon emissions annually by telecommuting four days per week. 
• Flying thoughtfully. Flying typically generates the highest carbon emissions of various transit options, but again, the dirt is in the details. Flying solo is actually less polluting than driving solo. As you add people into the travel, however, the car becomes the less-intensive travel method. In other words, four people flying across the country will burn a lot more CO₂ than four people riding in one car. Flying may not relate directly to new home construction, but many buyers site their homes with airport proximity in mind.  Offer the clients a detailed CO₂ analysis based on how often and where they travel. Add in the costs of vehicle storage at the airport while traveling, assess nearby availability of trains and bus service. Provide a full picture of the pros and cons of air travel as it relates to their new home.

With Net Zero, Make Hidden Assets Visible

There are many ways to lead clients toward net zero living. Traditionally, certifications have led the way because they take into account the many products and systems of a home and provide an overall performance estimate.

The type of certification is probably less important to clients than the end result. How you get there is really a business choice. You may be familiar with long-term players such as Energy Star for Homes, Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED), and so on. But there are also new approaches that may better fit your work style.

For example, Casey Murphy, senior vice president of quality and standards at Pearl Certification, says his company brings the key element of education to clients along with certification. “Our tagline is ‘we make value visible,’” he says, “which means that we want to demonstrate what makes a high-performing home better in terms of comfort, indoor air quality, and your wallet.”

Pearl Certification doesn’t compete with other green certification programs such as National Green Building Standard (NGBS), LEED, HERS, Energy Star or Net Zero Ready, Murphy explains. “We often integrate those ratings and labels into our certification materials,” he says. “In that way, we can be seen as a ‘Carfax’ or a diary for the home. And when the home is sold, we are a Rosetta Stone, translating the home’s certified features into benefits that home buyers, agents, and appraisers can understand and use in their respective decision-making processes.”

Interest in switching to electric vehicles continues to grow among the youngest homebuyers. Source: COGNITION Smart Data

Publisher’s Note: This content is made possible by our Today’s Homeowner Campaign Sponsors: Whirlpool Corporation. Whirlpool Corporation takes sustainability seriously, in both their products and their operations. Learn more about building and buying homes that are more affordable and less resource intensive.