Out of all of the places in the world, it would be fair to say that the people of Houston have very little faith in green technologies when it comes to real estate.
This is an area where the main proposition, for a number of decades, has been oil and gas. In other words, it’s quite the opposite of green and sustainable solutions.
However, the outlook is changing somewhat and while the typical photo of Houston in its current state might depict very traditional buildings, there is hope that this might not necessarily be the case in a few years.
According to Allen R Hartman, it’s just a matter of time before the majority of Houston catches on to the green phenomenon. He has outlined some of the main myths that are currently stalling this section of the real estate market, which we will now take a look at.
“Green homes just aren’t suited to Texas”
This relates to the point we made about oil and gas in the opening to this article. In other words, Texas as a whole has been the complete opposite of green over history, and it’s going to take a long period of time before this changes.
However, there is plenty of evidence to suggest that the opinions of residents are changing. Sure, you might have to turn to California to find all of the environmental awareness acts, but Texas has some green claims to fame of its own. For example, if you were to analyze the amount of green certified homes in both states, you would quickly see that Texas actually has three times as many.
In other words, the times are changing – so jump on-board.
“Green homes look strange”
This point follows on perfectly from the previous one. In other words, because most of us “assume” that Houston isn’t equipped for green real estate, we immediately think that homes are going to look somewhat out of place.
Well, as we’ve already discovered, this isn’t the case in the slightest. Green homes are becoming more suited to Texas, and you can see a lot more of the sustainable buildings donning the landscapes. So, in short, this isn’t an adequate excuse.
“Green homes in Houston are too expensive”
Again, the expensive nature of Texas means that many are under the impression that green homes are just unaffordable to start with.
Sure, some elements of Houston-life are on the pricy side and while we don’t have any hard and fast figures to hand, costs of labor might be a little more.
In terms of materials, there should be no such concerns though. It’s worth taking a “lifetime look” at materials, and analyzing just how much they are going to cost over the course of their useful life. Considering the fact that these materials are sustainable, they will tend to last for significantly longer periods of time. Immediately, this means that they will be cheaper for you in the long-term.