EEBA's High Performance Home Blog

Qwahn Kent - November 3, 2025 The custom home building market is experiencing a period of significant transformation. According to recent data from the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), new home construction has remained volatile in recent years, with builders navigating fluctuating material costs, labor shortages, and shifting buyer preferences. Despite these challenges, the built-to-order segment continues to represent a substantial portion of new home sales, with approximately 20-25% of new single-family homes being custom or semi-custom builds. Recent industry reports suggest that the average time from initial contact to signed contract in custom home building can range from three to six months, significantly longer than traditional home purchases. This extended sales cycle means that understanding and effectively addressing client objections isn't just important, it's essential for closing deals and maintaining healthy conversion rates. But what are buyers... read more

Part of what happens on the power grid starts in the homes we build. As energy demand continues to climb, the challenge - and opportunity - for builders is clear: how can we transform homes from energy consumers into energy producers and contributors to a more stable, sustainable grid? In the session Transforming Our Communities Into Grid Assets, panelists Megan Cordes, Director of Sustainability and Building Science at Beazer Homes; Joel Abney, Vice President of Operations at SH Residential Holdings, LLC; Matt Brost, Vice President of New Home Sales at​ Sunrun​; and Chip Silverman, ​​Director of Grid Services ​and Virtual Power ​Plants at Sunrun; came together to explore how forward-thinking builders and technology partners are reshaping the future of community energy. The Power Grid Is Changing The conversation began with a look at how our electrical grid has evolved - and where it’s headed. Panelists noted that the original grid was never designed for today’s rapidly... read more

Capturing the Value of High-Performance Homes Through Better Appraisals In today’s home-building environment, one of the toughest challenges is securing appraisal values that reflect the true performance and efficiency of high-performance homes. Although builders are investing in superior insulation, systems, and envelope quality, the market has frequently failed to reward those efforts. That is changing—and this 2025 Summit session recap explains how. Building the Case for Value When builders deliver homes that offer better comfort, lower utility bills, and longer durability, the expectation is that value follows. However, the appraisal and lending system has historically lagged behind. In a recent panel discussion, this issue was addressed head-on: Builders often report that even after constructing homes with excellent efficiency (for example, a home with a HERS score of –17), the appraisal came in significantly under the construction cost or expected... read more