Courtesy: Wojciechowski family
Real estate is a key piece of the puzzle for achieving U.S. climate goals, according to federal officials.
According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, residential and commercial buildings account for 31 percent of the country's greenhouse gas emissions when including “indirect” emissions such as electricity use, more than other sectors of the economy such as transportation and agriculture.
The Biden administration has taken several measures to reduce residential emissions.
The Inflation Reduction Act, which took effect in 2022, offers financial benefits, including tax breaks and rebates, to homeowners who make their homes more energy efficient. The White House also recently issued guidelines to allow buildings to be considered “zero-emissions,” meaning they are “energy efficient, free of emissions from on-site energy use, and powered exclusively by clean energy,” according to the Department of Energy.
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Morgan Wojciechowski, 33, is one of the first homeowners to receive the federal zero-emissions label. (This rating was awarded by the independent company Pearl Certification.)
Wojciechowski, her husband Casey and their three dogs – Dixie, Bo and Charlie – moved into the newly built residence in Williamsburg, Virginia in August 2023.
Wojciechowski, who is also 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 make their homes more energy efficient.
For the sake of clarity, the conversation has been edited and shortened.
Morgan Wojciechowski and her husband Casey.
Courtesy: Wojciechowski family
Greg Iacurci: What does it mean for your home to be considered “zero emissions”?
Morgan Wojciechowski: It's a highly efficient home that runs entirely on electricity. Those are the first two points of the White House definition, so to speak.
The third part is that we are part of the green energy program with [our power provider] Dominion. I don't just produce solar energy [energy] and the excess is fed back into the grid, but the electricity from the grid that comes into my house is clean and sustainable. For me, this clean electricity costs about $10 extra a month.
GI: How much did it cost to build your house?
MW: About $1.1 million.
GI: And how big is the house?
MW: 5,400 square feet.
It is 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 home forever. But one that is more reproducible would be like the [Healthy Communities] is building on Walnut Farm, which is about 15,000 square feet. We're selling it for $433,000.
GI: Can you break down the estimated savings for your home?
MW: Our electricity bills are expected to be about $917 per year. [solar] panels or about $80 per month.
The annual savings are $7,226 [relative to an average U.S. home, according to rater TopBuild Home Services]. This is only due to the efficiency of the house with solar energy.
If I subtracted the solar power production, I would save $5,431 annually. Solar power makes up for that.
Courtesy: Wojciechowski family
Courtesy: Wojciechowski family
Courtesy: Wojciechowski family
Courtesy: Wojciechowski family
Courtesy: Wojciechowski family
GI: What do you mean by “solar energy balances it out”?
MW: You generate energy. Your household uses that energy and sends excess energy back to Dominion. These credits are stored in an account and then applied to your bill. This is called net metering.
GI: So the energy company pays you this money?
MW: These credits will be applied to your next billing cycle. They will be applied to your total electricity bill and that is your potential savings.
Solar panels only make sense if you are building an energy efficient home that is truly all-electric.
Courtesy: Wojciechowski family
GI: Why is that?
MW: You need to have a home that is built or retrofitted to be energy efficient enough – by replacing your windows with higher quality windows and adding insulation – so that you need fewer panels on your roof and your investment pays off faster. Solar energy only makes sense if your investment pays off within a few years.
GI: Does that make solar energy more attractive?
MW: If you don't make an energy efficient upgrade to an existing home, or if you don't build a home that isn't energy efficient enough, you'll have to add more panels to make up for the lack of energy efficiency. And when that number gets too big, it freaks people out.
Solar energy has to fit the house you're installing it in, otherwise don't bother. Maybe you should just replace your windows, add insulation, air condition your crawl space, or upgrade your mechanical systems.
There's a lot consumers can do. You don't have to do it all at once. You don't have to have a solar home to be zero-emissions; you have to have an energy efficient home that runs all electric, and you have to buy renewable energy from your energy provider.
It's very accessible. Lots of people can do it. Everyone can participate at their sustainability level.
GI: How do you recommend people get started?
MW: I would say to a consumer, “Start with windows and doors.” It’s easy. Do that and see how you [efficiency] changes.
In many older homes, the windows are very old and leaky. Air comes in and out. If you think about it, a house is like an envelope. You want to seal the inside of your home as best as you can.
Next I would tackle the insulation.
Many older homes have HVAC systems and ductwork in the attic. Insulate it to make it a conditioned space so those building systems don't have to run at full speed to keep up with very hot or very cold temperatures. This makes for more energy efficiency.
And there are tax incentives [available] for energy efficient upgrades to your home. Consumers can get these and write them off, which is also attractive to people.
GI: If you're a renter, there are certain things that are out of your control. I think you can ask your landlord.
MW: Depends on what your rental situation is. I think it's a little harder to change someone else's mind. When you eventually have your own home, you'll have more say in what you can do.
Until then, you could be mindful of your energy use. Turn off the lights. It's really true. People don't turn off the lights. I mean, even though I have a very efficient home, I have timers on the appliances because I don't want to waste energy. It's easy and anyone can do it.
Correction: The house is 5,400 square feet. An earlier version had the number incorrect.