Category: Costs

Costs / Design / Financial / Lessons Learned

January 7, 2023

HOW MUCH EXTRA DOES IT COST TO BUILD A ZERO NET-ENERGY HOME?

HOW MUCH EXTRA DOES IT COST TO BUILD A ZERO NET-ENERGY HOME COMPARED TO A CODE COMPLIANT HOME? This is a much-debated question, with typical answers suggesting the incremental building costs to be within the range of 6% to 20%, see table below. My guess is that many authors consider the 20% number an outlier, but I’m not convinced of that based on my experience building a custom ZNE house. So as not to keep you in suspense, it cost me at least $112,000 extra to build THE HAYFIELD HOUSE to be zero net-energy versus merely code compliant. This equates to about 14% extra. This figure represents the initial incremental gross upfront building costs prior to any tax incentives, rebates, or avoided energy costs. Note: my...

NetZero-HayfieldHouse.com is created to help demystify the design, material selection, construction, and costs of building a zero net-energy, all-electric, single-family house that also preserves the conservation values of the land. Hopefully this blog will encourage others to join in a similar quest. Architects, builders, material suppliers, homeowners and others may benefit from the lessons learned (and suggestions offered) from the perspective of a homeowner who actively participated in and/or led every phase of this net-zero project.