There seems to be a growing trend in the Minnesota. Home builders are beginning to market their building techniques as “green” and some buyers are jumping on the trend. While prices for such efforts might cost more than a “traditional” home, buyers know that in the long run, the higher price will pay off with energy savings and low maintenance.

One way to market your home as green comes from the Minnesota GreenStar program which certifies both new construction and home remodels by applying five key concepts of “green”building. These categories are: Resource Efficiency, Water Conservation, Indoor Environmental Quality, Site and Community Impact, and Energy Efficiency. You can find a checklist and guidelines on their website to see if your project will qualify.

Around town, there are a few projects which are working toward reuse and applying some green building techniques, like Ripley Gardens.

Here are some ways that luxury home owners are trying to go green:

• “Green” roofs
• Low Emissivity Windows
• Low VOC Paints
• Geothermal high efficiency heating and cooling
• Solar Lighting
• Icynene Insulation
• Rain Gardens (a fairly new concept in Minnesota)
• Rainwater catch systems
• Native landscaping
• Sustainable / repurposed materials

If you have designed your luxury home around “green” techniques, take full advantage of marketing the home as such when it comes time to sell. Buyers in today’s market are looking for every benefit they can, and energy savings is high on their list of “must haves”. If you want to get some good ideas, the Parade of Homes Tour will be coming up in the next two months. There are usually a few green homes featured on the tour, so take the time to check them out!