What does it mean to be green? S.T.A.R. Training Wrap Up

Nest Note:  When it comes to the real estate industry, there is no simple answer to the question, “What does it mean to be green?” Throughout the coming weeks, our team of experts will discuss this very question as it pertains to the Central Virginia real estate market as well as the entire green building industry. First up? Greg Slater shares highlights from a recent certification course many Nesters took last week.

Sustainability Training for Accredited Real Estate Professionals, try saying that five times fast. Recently I had the opportunity to take a broker certification course held by the Earth Advantage Institute that is referred to as S.T.A.R ., and this short and simple acronym is a good representation of the goal of the course itself. The two-day program is aimed to give us in the real estate industry the knowledge and skills to clearly and efficiently help our clients navigate the increasingly complex world of green building.

In a recent survey commissioned by the folks at Virginia State Corporation Commission (presented during our training by LEAP-VA), 98% of Virginians polled indicated that saving energy is important. 72% anticipate energy costs to rise. As Realtors, we have to be prepared for more and more of our clients to be aware of the benefits of a green home, or at least be ready to field  informed and detailed questions on everything from Walk Scores and IAQ to a house’s Carbon Footprint and green building in general.

The S.T.A.R. Certification covered everything from the deceptively simple question of “What makes a green home?” to helping differentiate between the alphabet soup of green certification programs. I encourage you to check out the entire Virginia Energy Sense survey below and then contact your local Realtor to learn more about green building in your area.

Virginia Energy Sense 2012 Consumer Survey