Demand for green homes is on the rise. LEED for Homes is a third-party certification program that lets homebuilders verify their homes as truly green. A LEED-certified home is more energy and water efficient, demonstrates smart materials and resources use, puts durability at the forefront, and incorporates an integrated design process. A LEED-certified home is environmentally friendly, good for your buyers’ health, and good for your bottom line.
USGBC offers a host of resources to help you learn how to build the most-efficient, sustainable, healthy houses in the most cost-effective ways.
Education
USGBC’s educational offerings are tailored to your needs, whether you’re just starting out or are a more more experienced green homebuilder looking to hone your craft. Courses are taught by USGBC’s expert staff, and options are available either online or in person.
Check out all of our LEED for Homes curriculum.
Greenbuild Chicago - Nov 17-19, 2010
The
Greenbuild 2010 Residential Summit will be in Chicago this Nov 18. This is sure to be the biggest Residential Summit yet. The Summit is a great place to meet fellow green residential professionals, and see some of the newest products and technologies.
Residential Summit in Chicago will feature 15 educational sessions focusing on a wide range of topics, including cost-effective and energy efficient retrofits, as well as a track of advanced technical strategies that will help your next green building project succeed.
This year's Summit will also feature hand-picked residential experts debuting a residential Master Speakers Series. Speakers will address three high-priority issues in the green residential movement - Appraisals and Valuation; Marketing Strategies; and Efficient Retrofits.
LEED help
AEp1.1 - Basic Operations Training
The LEED for Homes Operations &Maintenance (HOM) Manual was developed to support the LEED for Homes prerequisite AE 1: Education of the Homeowner or Tenant, and to provide tips on maintaining a LEED-certified home. Be sure to read the Project Team Instructions for how to properly use and customize the manual.
- Sample Manual and Project Team Instructions - updated 08/10/2010
Local resources
- Find your local LEED for Homes Provider – Providers are local organizations with demonstrated experience and expertise in their region's market whose role in the LEED for Homes process includes marketing and rating support for builders and training, coordinating and overseeing LEED-qualified inspectors and building support staff.
- Get in touch with your local USGBC Chapter – Chapter membership is a great way to connect with green building colleagues in your area, help raise awareness about green building in your community, share strategies, resources and best practices, tour green building projects, and more.
Affordable housing
LEED for Homes represents the top tier of green homebuilding across the spectrum of housing types, and that includes affordable housing. In fact, because green homes are more efficient and result in lower utility and health-care bills, LEED for Homes is especially well-suited to affordable housing projects. To encourage affordable homebuilders to build efficient, healthy homes with LEED, USGBC will waive the registration fees for nonprofits building qualified affordable housing, and a generous grant from The Home Depot Foundation will cover verification costs.
Getting started
Once you’ve decided to build your next home project using LEED, visit the LEED for Homes Web site to register your project and get more technical information.
More green homes resources
- GreenHomeGuide.com is USGBC's consumer-focused resource that connects you to your customers, and puts green resources at your fingertips. GreenHomeGuide.com offers essential tools for your business: “Know How” features timely news and education, “Ask-a-Pro” lets you interact directly with your customers, and the “Find-a-Pro” directory expands your customer base.
- REGREEN – The nation’s first residential green remodeling and renovation guidelines. The free download provides best practices, case studies and other information for 10 different project types, including kitchens, bathrooms, gut rehabs and deep energy retrofits.
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