"Designed to Earn the ENERGY STAR" is a new partnership between ENERGY STAR and architects and designers, to promote green home building practices. House Plans that are "Designed to Earn the ENERGY STAR" generally include energy efficient details and specifications for features such as tight construction and duct systems, properly-installed insulation...

To earn the ENERGY STAR, a home must meet guidelines for energy efficiency set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. These homes are at least 15% more energy efficient than standard homes, and include additional energy-saving features that typically make them 20-30% more efficient than standard homes.

No matter what type of heating or cooling system you have, everyone is feeling the heat with rising energy costs. Typically, 45% of your utility bill goes for heating and cooling with more than half of homeowners in the U.S. using natural gas to heat their homes.

Find a home builder in your state, that has partnered with ENERGY STAR and has built an ENERGY STAR qualified new home in the last 12 months. Also find lenders that offer energy efficient mortgages, utilities that offer special incentives to buyers, and home energy raters (HERS) that can verify the energy efficiency of a home.

Your new home will need to be certified by an independent HERS Rating Company to qualify as Energy Star. HERS raters are special inspectors certified by Energy Star that perform field verification and diagnostic testing to determine energy efficiency levels among homes tested for duct efficiency, envelope leakage and building insulation for compliance with current building efficiency standards. HERS Raters work with the homebuilder throughout the building process, providing technical assistance