HLC is working with developers to roll out the requirement for all new homes built within HLC’s large-scale development projects in Northcote, Mt Roskill, Mangere and Oranga to carry a 6 Homestar rating or higher. The independent rating system administered by New Zealand Green Building Council takes into account energy, water, waste, ventilation, natural lighting health and comfort, and other environmental factors of a house.
Louelle Botes, HLC’s Programme Manager for Development Evaluation says the intention of the requirement is to ensure that homes are more economical to maintain, gentler on the environment, and healthier to live in.
“According to New Zealand Green Building Council, most existing homes built only to the Building Code would achieve a three-to-four Homestar rating. We think that aiming for a higher standard has far-reaching benefits – not only for the wellbeing of people living in a warmer and drier home with lower household bills, but also for the environment,” says Botes.
“Reduced electricity and waste can also reduce overall carbon emissions, and the Homestar rating also recognises the environmental benefits of using sustainable materials and fewer resources.”
Start your property search
While all builder partners in HLC developments already build high-quality homes, Botes says the Homestar rating is a practical way to ensure a consistent measure is applied to every house. “At present, Homestar is the primary residential rating tool provided to the building industry by New Zealand Green Building Council. It makes sense to adopt one consistent approach amongst our partner agencies. This will ensure that residential homes exceed the building code in areas like insulation, moisture control and water efficiency in a simple and consistent way. However we do see it as our responsibility to continually improve on these tools and we’re looking at other international best-practice measures and how they might be applied in our developments,” she says.
The Homestar scoring system doesn’t necessarily require extra investment in terms of building costs, but a Homestar rating is a signal of good, simple design choices like orienting the house and placing windows to maximise sunlight, good ventilation, water-efficient taps and toilets, and energy-efficient lighting.
Combined with increased insulation, efficient heating and thoughtful landscaping, Botes says these new houses will be warmer, drier and more affordable to run. HLC will also monitor and measure relative water and energy savings for these newly-built homes, and review the humidity and temperature levels by undertaking evaluations once the homes are occupied.
- Content supplied by the Urban Development Group
