Saving energy and money in New York

Columbia County Habitat in Hudson, New York, has built two more townhouses with Passive House design, which uses insulation that can store hot air on cold days and cold air on hot days.

Like another pair of Habitat houses built on the same street in 2012, these use 90 percent less heating energy — and 70 percent less energy overall — than conventional construction.

New homeowner Misha Forbes says that helping to build the house “made us appreciate it even more. And it brought our family closer together.” In the family’s new home, “we don’t have to worry about the heating or electricity going off or the roof leaking. And we get to save more money.”

Passive House energy performance exceeds the energy efficiency of LEED or Energy Star 3 homes.