by Conor Lee

When Larry Brittain moved from the Bay area to Sacramento, he was looking to buy green. He found an affordable, earth-friendly home in Carsten Crossing, a Rocklin Grupe Homes development, paying $521,000 for 2,400 square feet. "I wanted to be in a newer community and save money, and I was concerned about my footprint on the environment," he says.

Brittain didn't realize just how green he was going, however. "I didn't even know it was LEED certified," he says. "I love having all this technology at my fingertips."

He's referring to SunTile roof tiles by SunPower, a tankless water heater and an energy efficient air conditioning system. "The home I lived in before [in the Bay area] had gas and electric bills that were between $200 and $250 more per month," Brittain says. "The first full year here I paid a total of $477 for gas and electricity."

According to Steve Rath, a realtor in the Sacramento area, customers like Brittain are unusual because sustainable building hasn't really caught on. "The cost is substantially more - some estimate $30,000 to $50,000 more - to purchase a green home," Rath says. "Because of this added cost, people are opting to save money rather than the environment."

But this hasn't been the case with the Carsten Crossing development, says Mark Fisher, vice president of operations at Grupe Homes. "We've had no trouble selling [our green homes] as opposed to our regular units," he says. Brittain agrees, noting that there wasn't a significant difference in prices when he compared Carsten Crossing homes with others in the area.

Scott Blank, owner of GreenBuilt Construction, one of the first green builders in the Sacramento area, says it all depends on what materials you use. "Most of the increased cost lies in the finished products: the countertops, floors, doors and windows," he says. "But you can bring down the cost by controlling other aspects of the job, such as how you handle work site waste."

When it comes to getting your home certified, there are options besides LEED in Sacramento. Build It Green's GreenPoint rating system, out of San Francisco, just began promoting itself in the Central Valley, according to Katy Hollbacher, a Build It Green project manager.

In order to appeal to mainstream builders, GreenPoint certification cost ranges from $700 to $1,000. "This can vary greatly depending on many factors, including the amount of work the third party rater needs to do and the travel cost for that rater," Hollbacher says.

Despite the costs, Rath recognizes the value of going green. "It's the future of energy conservation," he says. Brittain is banking on this prediction. "I'm sure my LEED-certified home with solar panels will be very attractive when I retire," he says.