Homearama 2010 Showcases changes in Housing Industry
Contributed by The Home Builders Association of Louisville

Shakes Run, a Canfield Development, is the site of Homearama for the second year in a row. As always, Homearama will showcase fully furnished and beautifully decorated homes that will highlight the latest trends in style and colors, but this year’s event will also highlight some of the changing features in the housing industry relative to design, function, and energy efficiency. The national trends that are shaping changes in housing, which is based on consumer preference, seem to be aligned with the current desires of home buyers in Louisville. For the first time in this event’s history, nine out of the 10 homes built for Homearama are sold! However, the remaining Homearama home is available for purchase and other home styles can be built to suit, if you so choose.

This year the Homearama homes will reflect the national housing trend creating a home with a smaller footprint, but one that is loaded with amenities. The total square footage of most of this year’s homes is around 4,000 sq. ft., where as in year’s past the average was nearly double that figure. According to national building experts in an article from the February National Association of Home Builders, BUILDER magazine, the trend in housing moving forward will be smaller homes equipped with functional designs that provide more open space, outdoor living concepts, plenty of storage and loaded with high-end amenities.

These new home designs will still showcase the latest in interior decorating, furnishings, and technology that you are accustomed to see in Homearama homes. And, once you step inside the doors of each home, you will likely not notice many differences from year’s past. Although the homes’ footprints are smaller, the functional designs, high ceilings, and open concepts will makes the houses feel much larger than they appears from the street.

Trends also suggest that consumers are seeking larger shared spaces and slightly smaller personal spaces. Open family rooms that flow into the kitchen and eating areas are featured in many of this year’s homes. Bedrooms will offer enough space for personal retreat, but are designed with very little wasted extra space. Closet spaces and storage areas have always been a desired feature in houses that are not left out of these designs.

These designs also create living spaces in outdoor areas, which many times are covered extensions of the family rooms. Outdoor spaces will sometimes even include extended kitchen spaces that offer excellent entertaining areas or are great for just hanging out with the family. These spaces are especially desirable in the Shakes Run community, where each lot is designed to back up to green space or water features. 

Houses are not only using space differently and more effectively, but they are being built to use energy in a more efficient way. Whether the motivation for these new home designs is function or forced by the economy, one thing is true – the design concept is green. By creating a smaller floor space, the need to utilize each square foot for functional living is increased, creating less wasted conditioned space. The Homearama designs will also have less wasted building materials, which adds to the green concept.  Each home featured in this year’s event will also be ENERGY STAR qualified. ENERGY STAR qualified homes traditionally cost less to operate, offer consistent and comfortable indoor temperatures, have healthier indoor air quality due to tighter construction, and contain ENERGY STAR qualified appliances.

Many of these green concepts will not be visible when touring the Homearama homes because the “guts” of the house and the processes used during the construction phase are what make the home energy efficient. Energy efficient and green building practices consider the house as a system, meaning that each component of the home operates with and can affect one another. Therefore, what is behind the walls and on the exterior of the house is just as important as finishes on the inside of the home. To accomplish this whole house system, special framing techniques are implemented and caulk is used in between joints and where wood framing is stacked together on exterior walls to create an air barrier. House wrap is placed on the outside of the home, or other building materials are used that create the same effect, to keep the outside air from penetrating through to the inside of the house. Insulation is effectively installed inside exterior walls to additionally keep out air and noise. All of these components help to create a consistent and comfortable temperature inside the home. They also help to cut down on noise pollution that can come from the outside.

Other ENERGY STAR features can be seen, but you may not be able to recognize how they are more efficient when you see them. HVAC technicians specially seal joints in duct systems throughout the home to ensure that the air moving through the system reaches the intended distribution point. This sealing also helps to cut down on the amount of dust in the home. Doors and windows, as well as appliances that have earned the ENERGY STAR are installed in the home. Paints with low or no volatile organic compounds (VOC’s) are also used on the walls within the homes, which cut down on the amount of off-gases over time from the paints and finishes can be harmful to the environment. These paints are now cost-effective because of the demand for the products and are durable.

ENERGY STAR qualified homes are third party verified by a Home Energy Rater (HERS rater). The HERS rater inspects the home during the framing stage of construction and then again at the completion of the building process. A variety of tests are performed that will indicate the amount of air movement from within the house to the outside, as well as within the home’s duct system that enable to HERS rater to determine how efficient the home operates. After the tests, the home receives a numerical indicator called a HERS score that represents how much more efficient the home is than the standard building code.  ENERGY STAR qualifications currently require that a home operate a minimum of 15% better than code. Using the numerical system, code is equivalent to 100 and an ENERGY STAR qualified home must receive at least an 85 in order to be considered qualified. The lower the HERS score the more efficient the home should operate. ENERGY STAR qualified homes receive the blue ENERGY STAR label with the HERS score printed on it, which are often placed on the electrical panel box inside the home.

Although energy efficiency only represents one of the changing trends in housing for the future, it is definitely an important component for buyers. And although some of the other trends in housing may come and go, it is likely that energy and other resource efficiencies will remain in high demand by consumers for years to come.

Homearama 2010 will take place July 10 – 25 at Shakes Run, located in Eastwood, off of Shelbyville Road. This year’s event is presented by Insight and LG&E, an E-ON Company and sponsored by Republic Bank. Homearama is produced by the Home Builders Association of Louisville. For more information about this year’s event, to learn more about the builders and to see photos of the construction of these homes, visit www.Homearama.com.