Green Building

What is Green Building?

Green building (also known as sustainable building) involves designing and building homes using the latest environmentally friendly and energy efficient techniques. The result is a home that not only minimizes its impact on the environment, but also maximizes the overall quality of life for its inhabitants.

Benefits to the Homeowner

Longevity of Green Building design homes are one of many benefits to homeowners

Longevity of the Home

Durability is the cornerstone of any home. Green homes have become the paramount of durability by utilizing recycled and more long-lasting materials in the build process. These environmentally friendly materials increase to the longevity of the home, and reduce the amount and frequency of home repairs.

Green building homeowners enjoy an improved indoor air quality in their homes

Improved Indoor Environment

Traditional homes often suffer from poor ventilation causing mold and impacting the quality of the air within the home. However, "green" homes have better indoor air quality (IAQ) than conventional homes, due the emphasis on ventilation systems in the home as well as non-toxic, low-emitting materials in the build process.

Reduced Energy Costs

The combination of high efficiency water systems, ventilation, and insulation used in the design of green homes translates to big long-term energy savings for homeowners. These saving will in time recoup the potential increase in cost of building a green home.

Green buildings reduce water usage in the home by utilizing the latest in water saving technology

Reduced Water Usage

With the recent drought in California, water conservation has become more important than ever. Green buildings reduce their water consumption by utilizing high-efficiency water heaters, fixtures, appliances, pools, landscaping and more!

Green Building Award

The City of Santa Cruz recognizes construction projects that utilize the latest in environmentally conscious and sustainable design and building practices.

In order to be eligible to receive a green building award for your home, there are guidelines that must be followed in the design and build process. Projects that wish to receive a Green Building Award must obtain a minimum number of points - awarded based on various environmentally conscious aspects of a structure. The number of points needed to achieve a Green Building Award is based on the scale of the project (more points are needed for bigger projects).

Green Building Award given by the city of Santa Cruz to many projects designed by Golden Visions

At Golden Visions Design, we are dedicated to advancing green building practices throughout our design process. We currently hold the most Green Building Design Awards in Santa Cruz County and look forward to tackling all green building design projects.

Want more information about green building projects? Contact Us!