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Affordable housing is defined by the Wikipedia as "a housing cost that does not exceed 30% of a household's gross income" including utility bills, taxes, and insurance. Habitat.org states, "More than 13 million households [approximately 10%] pay more than 50 percent of their income for housing" as well as "For the 14.8 million U.S. households that make $10,000 or less per
year, a year's rent costs about 70 percent of their annual income." Typically, even with government subsidization, this translates into substandard living conditions and continues the cycle of poverty. |
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Building for zero energy usage -
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According to the US Department of Energy, the average US Household spends a little over $103 per month for electricity, The average annual cost per household for heating fuels were: propane - $1,950, fuel oil - $1,864, natural gas - $887, with electric heat (not included in the electricity estimates quoted above) coming in at $947.
Factored over a 30 year period (the length of the traditional mortgage) and assuming that these costs do not change, the average cost for a household for utility bills works out to be: propane/electricity - $61,590, fuel oil/electricity - $59,010, natural gas/electricity - $29,700, and electricity solely - $31,500. Even better, replacing an existing house with a NetPLUS home could cost less than the total cost of energy during the same 30 years period. |
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Generating excess energy for resale -
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In many situations, speaking predominately towards the multi-tenant and city district models, it's possible to build additional electricity and heat generating capacity into the project than would be required by the residents. This surplus energy could then be sold to the local utility, at wholesale rates, thereby lowering the cost of the housing units. Additionally, SRECs may be available to further drive the cost of this installed technology down.
When this concept is applied to a city district, where mixed use, residential and commercial/retail space is shared, the retail price of this energy can be realized, again, allowing for the decreased cost of ownership (or rental fees) to be enjoyed. In both cases mentioned, the cost to incorporate this technology has an attractive return on Investment. |
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| NetPLUS Concepts lowers the total cost of
home ownership while increasing financial stability
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Removing the cost for heat, hot water and air conditioning |
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Applying federal and state energy tax credits |
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Creating long-lasting, low maintenance structures
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Eliminating unpredictable variations in utility charges |
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Building better communities that import less resources |
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