If this doesn’t sound like a dream come true, I don’t know what does. The German government is testing a new design for a low-energy home packed with renewable energy generation systems, dubbed the Efficiency House Plus. If the design works as it should, it’ll not only produce enough electricity to meet all its own needs, but it’ll produce enough spare juice to charge a family car.

The 1400-square-foot house generates all this power using a combination of solar panels and heat storage systems. At the same time, advanced energy management technology helps keep consumption down and ensures the house’s energy use is in line with what the energy of the weather provides. As SmartPlanet reports:

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Econ 101 Solar panels increase home values 2

It stands to reason that adding an asset which cuts your electricity bills–solar panels–will bump up a home’s value. Now an economic study attaches numbers to solar panels’ real-estate value.

The National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) recently released an analysis that found solar panels add between 3 percent and 4 percent to the value of a home. That result is consistent with a study released in April by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory which found that solar photovoltaic (PV) panels have a “sizeable effect” on home prices.

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Why installing solar power looks increasingly attractive for homeowners

Are you a homeowner with some spare cash? A 20%-25% collapse in the price of rooftop solar power units in recent months has turned the government’s feed-in tariff scheme into one of the most lucrative financial propositions for households with the right sort of property.

The scheme was introduced in April 2010, when the Labour government introduced generous feed-in tariffs to encourage households to install solar photovoltaic systems. Back then, anyone spending, say, £13,000 up front to fit a 2.5kWp system to their home was paid 41.3p per kilowatt hour (kWh) generated – enough to earn them a typical annual income of £900 a year in payments, on top of a £140-a-year saving in reduced electricity bills.

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by Greenergy News

When there is energy wasted, it is not just costing money it is also hurting the environment.  With the cost of fuel on the rise there are many people who are looking to build an energy efficient house and this will in turn help their electric bills lower.  It is a great thing that new homes are now being built to be energy efficient.

When you build an energy efficient home you will save money in the long run.  Some mortgage companies even will offer some incentives for people who are building to build an energy efficient home.  There are also federal tax incentives for people that have built these homes.  Also by building a new energy efficient home will only increase in value as there are many people that are looking to buy one.

By building an energy efficient home you can relax knowing that you have done a major part in conserving your planet.  There has been an estimation done that sixteen percent of greenhouse gasses which are produced in America do come from the energy that comes from homes.  This means that the less energy that is used, the less greenhouse gas is produced.

By building an energy efficient home there will be no cold breezes blowing through your home making it cold and at time very uncomfortable.  The new energy efficient home are protected against cold, heat, drafts, and moisture.  Inside air quality is not only better but temperature is also consistent.

When building a new energy efficient home there are other things to consider.  Energy efficient windows and doors, solar heat, water saving faucets, appliances that are energy efficient. There are many choices to make in order to go green by building a new energy efficient home should be one that you truly consider.

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