Take a look inside a $1.1 million “zero emission” home

Real estate is a key piece of the puzzle in meeting U.S. climate goals, according to federal officials.

Residential and commercial buildings account for 31 percent of the nation’s greenhouse gas emissions, after accounting for “indirect” emissions like electricity use, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. It is more than other economic sectors such as transport and agriculture.

The Biden administration has enacted various policies to reduce residential emissions.

The Inflation Relief Act, passed in 2022, provides financial benefits, including tax breaks and rebates, to homeowners who make their homes more energy efficient, for example. The White House also recently issued guidelines for buildings to be considered “zero emissions,” meaning they are “energy efficient, with no on-site emissions from energy use and powered exclusively by clean energy.” according to the Department of Energy.

More from Personal Finance:
How electric vehicles and petrol cars compare in terms of total cost
Here’s how to buy renewable energy from your electricity company
8 simple – and cheap – ways to reduce your carbon footprint

Morgan Wojciechowski, 33, is among the first homeowners to receive the federal zero-emission label. (This rating was awarded by the third-party firm Pearl Certification.)

Wojciechowski, her husband Casey, and their three dogs—Dixie, Bo, and Charlie—moved into their newly constructed residence in Williamsburg, Virginia, in August 2023.

Wojciechowski, who is also the president of Healthy Communities, a local real estate developer focused on sustainable construction, spoke to CNBC about her new home, its financial benefits and how consumers can best improve their homes to be more efficient.

The conversation has been edited and condensed for clarity.

Greg Iacurci: What does it mean for your home to be considered “zero emissions”?

Morgan Wojciechowski: It’s a very, very, very efficient house that’s all electric. Those are sort of the first two points of the definition of the White House.

The third part is that we are part of the green energy program with (our energy supplier) Dominion. Not only do I produce solar (power) and any excess goes back into the grid, but the grid energy coming into my home is clean and sustainable. That’s about $10 more per month to get that clean energy.

GI: How much did your house cost to build?

MW: About $1.1 million.

GI: And how big is the house?

MW: 5,800 square meters.

It’s a big house. But mine is not what everyone does. My house was my personal project because I believe in sustainability and I wanted to do it in a house that would be my forever home. But one that’s more replicable would be like what (Healthy Communities) is building at Walnut Farm, which is like 1,500 square feet. We are selling it for $433,000.

GI: Can you detail the estimated savings of your home?

MW: Our utility bills are estimated to be about $917 per year with (solar) panels, or about $80 per month.

Annual savings are $7,226 (compared to the average U.S. home, according to evaluator TopBuild Home Services). This is only from the yield of the solar house.

If you eliminated solar generation, I would save $5,431 annually. The sun makes up for it.

GI: What do you mean solar makes up for it?

MW: You create energy. Your house uses that energy and sends the excess energy back to the Dominion. These credits are stored in an account, and then those credits offset your bill. It’s called net metering.

GI: So the power company pays you that money?

MW: These credits are applied to the next billing cycle. These offset your overall utility bill and that’s where your savings come in.

Solar panels only make sense if you are building an energy efficient home that is truly all electric.

GI: Why?

MW: You need to have a home built that is energy efficient enough or retrofitted – by replacing windows with better quality windows, adding insulation – so you need fewer panels on your roof so you get a faster payback of the investment. Solar only makes sense if you will have a return on investment in a few years.

GI: Does that make solar more attractive?

MW: If you don’t make energy-efficient upgrades to an existing home, or if you don’t build a home that’s energy-efficient enough, you need to add more panels to compensate for the lack of energy efficiency. And if that number gets too high, it drives people crazy.

Solar has to make sense with the house you put it in or else don’t do it. Maybe just upgrade your windows, add insulation, condition your crawl space, upgrade your mechanical systems.

There are lots of things consumers can do. You don’t have to do them all at once. You don’t have to have a solar home to have zero emissions; you must have an energy efficient home that is all electric and you must buy renewable energy from the utility company.

It is extremely affordable. Many people can do this. Everyone can join at their level of sustainability.

GI: How do you recommend people get started?

MW: I would say to a consumer, why don’t you start with windows and doors. It’s a very easy one. Do that and see how you notice any (efficiency) changes.

In many older homes, the windows are very old and leaky. Air goes in and out. If you think about it, a house is like an envelope. You want to seal the interior of your home as well as possible.

Next I would hit the insulation.

Many older homes have HVAC systems ducted inside their attics. Insulate it so that it’s a conditioned space so that those building systems don’t have to overwork to keep up with very hot temperatures or very cold temperatures. That keeps it more energy efficient.

And there are tax incentives (available) for energy efficient upgrades to your home. Consumers can get them and cancel them, so that’s attractive to people as well.

GI: If you’re a renter, there are certain things that are out of your control. I guess you can ask the owner.

MW: Depending on your rental situation. I feel like it’s a little more daunting to change someone else’s mind. Once you get to your own home, eventually, you’ll have more to say about what you can do.

Until then, you might as well be careful about the energy you use. Turn off the lights. I mean, this is a real thing. People don’t turn off the lights. I mean, even though I have a very efficient house, I have timers on things because I don’t want to waste energy. It’s an easy thing that anyone can do.