Eco-homes for sale!
Tuesday 26 July 2005
Green building society backs green moves
Ecology Building Society has renewed its support for Green Moves the UK's first website dedicated to promoting energy-efficient homes for sale. The Yorkshire-based Society jointly sponsors the website with The World Wildlife Fund's One Million Sustainable Homes campaign and The Naturesave Trust. The Green Moves website provides a means of advertising homes for sale that have been newly built or renovated to a high environmental standard, as well as building plots that have been granted planning permission for new eco-homes.
Typically 'green' homes incorporate such features as:
- Higher than normal levels of insulation.
- Natural building materials, such as timber frame and/or cladding, wool insulation, straw bale walls, organic paints etc.
- Solar thermal hot water heating systems.
- Photovoltaic panels for generating electricity.
- Wood fired central heating systems.
- Rainwater harvesting for flushing toilets.
- Greywater collection (from sinks and bath) for watering the garden.
- Composting toilets.
The energy used in residential buildings accounts for 30% of the UK's total energy consumption and residential energy demand continues to grow at a higher rate than any other. Energy consumption results in carbon emissions, which exacerbate climate change, so it is imperative that we reduce the amount of energy we consume at home by making our homes more energy-efficient. Green Moves aims to make it easier for people to buy and sell eco-homes and encourage the growth of the eco-homes market. The Ecology is an obvious supporter of Green Moves as it specialises in providing green mortgages for the ecological renovation and conversion of existing run-down, derelict properties, as well as for the construction of new ecologically sound homes.
By sponsoring Green Moves the Ecology hopes to increase the stock of ecological housing in the UK. Chief Executive Paul Ellis comments, "Green Moves will not only prove to be an invaluable resource for potential eco home-buyers but in helping to 'make the market' in eco-homes will make an enormous contribution to tackling climate change issues."
For further details on Ecology mortgages visit www.ecology.co.uk or call 0845 674 5566. To find out more about how to buy or sale an eco-home visit visit www.greenmoves.co.uk or call 01460 77155.
