Higher Standards = Market Transformation

Earth Advantage offers certification programs for affordable and market rate single family homes and multifamily buildings:

Single family – detached homes, duplexes, tri-plexes, townhomes, accessory dwelling units (ADUs)
Certifications apply to detached homes or shared wall homes only.

Multifamily – stacked walls and floor/ceiling shared buildings,  residential buildings, dormitories, assisted living facilities, skilled nursing facilities, and continuing care facilities. 
No height limits apply. Specializing in low-income building solutions. 


 

 

View the 2023 Earth Advantage Award Winners



 

Overview

Our certification tiers are designed to guide all builders and residential buildings at any level of building performance. From Silver certification, suitable to builders making their first step from code into above code practices all the way to Zero Energy Certification that awards builders for exceptional performance.
 

Five Pillars of Sustainability

Our 5 Pillar (Health, Energy, Land, Water, & Materials) Certification program guides project teams to go beyond the minimum needs of a house and support them in creating a healthy and equitable place of home.


ENERGY

We have the technology and the knowledge to produce net zero homes on a mass scale. Through smart design and leveraging system synergies, we can drastically reduce the operational energy usages in new homes

  • Reduce Operational Carbon
  • Improve Operational Energy
  • Commissioning
  • Resiliency (Solar, EV, battery)

HEALTH

Productive lifestyles start with good health. We believe a home is a place to thrive physically and emotionally. We encourage our participants to create a place families can raise healthy children and care for elderly without worrying of the toxins in and around their home.

  • Low/Zero toxins in building materials
  • Low/Zero toxins in finish materials
  • Moisture/Particulate Management

LAND/PLANNING

Developing buildable lots, weather greenspace, brown space, or infill, can be costly and time consuming. The impacts of climate change are seen in fires, landslides, and storms. We need to protect our housing stock against.

  • Density
  • Accessibility
  • Resource Conservation
  • Erosion Control
  • Affordability
  • Inclusion

MATERIALS

Harvesting, processing, transporting, and disposing of materials can contain some amount of carbon emissions and worker inequality. We encourage our participants to use products that promote environmental sustainability and healthy working conditions for their employees.

  • Embodied carbon
  • Waste Management
  • Local materials
  • Recycled/renewable   

WATER

The average American household uses about 300 gallons of water a day. Clean water is an essential component to a healthy life, but since not everyone has the same access to it, we challenge our participants to capture and use water as efficiently as possible.

  • Efficient Domestic Design (in the model)
  • Efficient Outdoor (landscape, pools/spas)
  • Stormwater Management roof and lot