1. Ask for certifications. If the home builder or Realtor does not belong to a nationally recognized organization, ask how and why they are making an eco-friendly claim. If they are certified, don’t immediately assume their paperwork is legitimate. Do some digging of your own to verify their claims, and the validity of their certifications. Realtors claiming Energy Efficient homes in Thomasville, Georgia better have third part verification documents to back it up or buyer I would file a lawsuit against the agent and brokerage office for misrepresenting that listing.
2. Don’t be an undereducated consumer. Do some investigating of your own to confirm that what they’re telling you is actually true. If you’re about to make an investment of several hundred thousand dollars, shouldn’t you get the maximum value for your dollar as possible?
3. Don’t fall for the window dressing. Just because they use nontoxic paint or installed insulation with a R-value above what the local building code requires, don’t assume the house is 100% green. Very few homes (if any) can be 100% green, so when you’re listening to a long list of stats about how great their product is, keep your suspicions up. Taking notes might help too.
4. Energy efficient products alone isn’t enough. Quality and workmanship are always paramount when buying a new home. So it’s entirely possible to have the best insulating triple paned windows on the market, but a small leak around the windowsill will negate their efficacy. It’s best to think of your house as a energy efficient system, rather than a combination of green products.
Beware Greenwashing Advertisements When Buying a New Home
http://www.grec.state.ga.us/consumer/complaint.html
