Eco-friendly homes have many positive effects on homeowners and the environment. Green homes often incorporate building materials and techniques that reduce the risk of certain types of damage to your home. As a result, you can earn a discount on your homeowners insurance. You can also save money on utilities thanks to the home’s energy efficiency.
Potential savings aren’t the only reason people choose eco-friendly homes. A sustainable home and lifestyle can be healthier for you, your family, and the planet. Even if you don’t live in an eco-friendly home, you can make it more sustainable with simple changes.
Learn more about the benefits of eco-friendly homes and how you can reduce your home’s environmental impact.
An eco-friendly home has a small carbon footprint, meaning it produces minimal greenhouse gasses and uses natural resources efficiently.1
Eco-friendly homes typically use sustainable materials and technologies to decrease the home’s energy and water usage.2 For example, passive-design homes use special design and building techniques to improve the efficiency of the home’s heat system and air conditioner.
Other types of eco-friendly homes that promote green living include:3
Prefabricated homes comprised of parts constructed and partially put together in a factory
Tiny homes with efficient layouts and less than a few hundred square feet
Earth-sheltered homes built below ground
Straw-bale homes with a framework of straw
Log homes
Shipping container homes
Eco-friendly homes usually have certain sustainable elements in common, including the following:
Eco-friendly features can potentially save you money on your homeowners insurance premiums. For example, Farmers Insurance offers discounts to homeowners whose homes have Energy Star, LEED, or EPA green certifications. Travelers offers a home insurance discount of 5% for LEED-certified homes.
A home’s eco-friendly characteristics protect it against several different perils. For example, temperature and humidity control and good ventilation reduce the risk of mold growth. Solar power reduces the risk that pipes will freeze and burst during a winter power outage. Smart sensors can detect water leaks and automatically turn water off if it senses one.
Some insurance companies offer green homeowners insurance as an optional coverage. Green insurance lets you replace products in your home with more eco-friendly or energy-efficient versions in the event a covered peril damages or destroys your current items. It can also cover the cost of rebuilding to green standards after covered damage.
The coverage might even cover the cost of purchasing electricity if a covered peril damages your solar, geothermal, or wind-power system. It can sometimes reimburse you for losses if you sell surplus energy to a power company.
Green insurance is relatively new and still uncommon, so not all insurance companies offer it, and it’s not available in every state. Insurers may cap coverage and exclude certain fees.
Availability varies by state and by insurance company, so insurers don’t have one set of eligibility criteria. But the typical qualifications may apply:
Existence of energy-saving features, such as LED lights and smart thermostats
Sustainable building materials
Water-saving features, including rainwater harvesting systems
Sustainable landscaping
Green certifications or ratings
Contact your insurance agent to see if your insurer offers this insurance and, if it does, whether you qualify.
A sustainable house helps preserve the planet for future generations. It’s one of the best ways to enhance your comfort and well-being, and green features can also save you money.
Consider the following eco-friendly home improvements:
Replace worn-out appliances. Energy Star-rated appliances use less energy, so they cost less to operate.
Install smart-home technologies. Smart thermostats and water sensors control temperature and humidity and warn of leaks.
Weatherize doors and windows. Weatherstripping prevents heated or air-conditioned air from leaking outside.
Shade windows. For east- and south-facing windows in particular, shade windows with curtains and blinds to keep out the sun.
Add extra insulation. Your attic, walls, and ceilings should all have ample insulation.
Enhance your home’s ventilation. Install exhaust fans or a whole-house system for natural ventilation.
Install solar panels. By generating at least some of your own electricity, you’ll see energy savings and might even be able to sell excess electricity to your power company.
Replace old windows and skylights. More efficient windows reduce energy loss.
Replace lightbulbs. Replace blown tungsten bulbs with LED or compact fluorescent light bulbs.
The following information can help answer your remaining questions about eco-friendly homes.
An eco-friendly, or green, home has a small carbon footprint. It’s energy-efficient, conserves natural resources, and uses sustainable construction techniques and materials to reduce waste and environmental impacts. Sustainable living promotes environmental benefits.
Small changes, such as installing eco-friendly products like smart thermostats, weatherstripping, and shading to reduce cooling and heat loss, make your home more eco-friendly. Installing Energy Star-rated appliances and LED or CFL bulbs is also more eco-friendly. You can also use sustainable landscaping to make good use of rainwater and reduce carbon emissions.
If you renovate or remodel, consider using sustainable building materials like recycled glass, cork, and hempcrete.
Prefabricated homes are practical and environmentally friendly because builders construct them in factories, with less waste than onsite construction generates.
Site-built homes that use sustainable design, or passive design, are also eco-friendly. Passive design uses strategies that include orienting a home to take advantage of sun and wind for warming and cooling, and incorporating passive solar, geothermal energy, or other clean energy as well as natural ventilation.
Many factors influence building costs, and how you incorporate them determines whether a particular eco-friendly home costs more. For example, solar panels add to the cost but eventually pay for themselves and can even generate income. Sustainable materials might cost more, but efficient construction techniques use fewer materials and reduce waste, which saves money.
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