Asheville HBA Meets Congressman Mark Meadows To Discuss National Building Issues
This past Tuesday, at the Asheville HBA office, Sean Sullivan (President of Living Stone Construction and President-Elect for the NCHBA), Steven Webb (lobbyist for NCHBA), Caroline Sutton (Executive Officer of Asheville HBA), and 7 others met with Congressman Mark Meadows to examine current and future problems the country faces in the building industry.
A new survey shows that they are.
It’s National Designation Month, when the National Association of Home Builders shine the spotlight on those industry professionals who go the extra mile by seeking the education and training they need to attain professional designations that signify their specialized knowledge.
It’s especially important with green ─ high-performance ─ building. More and more consumers are looking for homes designed to save energy and water and that incorporate locally sourced materials. Choosing a builder or remodeler who holds the NAHB Certified Green Professional (CGP) or Master Certified Green Professional designations is one way to find someone with the latest knowledge of these high-performance practices.
These industry professionals have studied the interplay between energy efficiency and indoor air quality, understand the principles of environmentally sensitive lot design and are trained to help their buyers make decisions to result in a home that is green as they want it to be.
Many of these professionals also turn to certification programs such as the ENERGY STAR and whole-house certification programs such as those based on the ICC National Green Building Standard (NGBS), a nationally accredited rating system that forms the foundation of their training.
The result: Measurable customer satisfaction.
“The energy efficiency of the house has made it very comfortable through some very extreme weather and our energy bills have been remarkably low. I cannot believe how well we did on energy costs every month. The energy star rating of the home has really paid off. Truly, I haven’t had energy costs this low in 20 years.” Gary Holstein
Every home we build is Energy Star Certified. Why?
With ENERGY STAR, you know you are making the right decision—for your wallet, for your family, and for the environment—bringing these important benefits:
By using less energy for heating, cooling, and water heating, ENERGY STAR certified homes deliver approximately 20% savings on annual utility bills. Over the 7 to 8 years that a typical family lives in a home, you can save thousands of dollars in maintenance cost.
It’s interesting how the most challenging projects also turn out to also be the most rewarding. That was the case with today’s featured home renovation. This two-year labor of love presented Asheville builder Sean Sullivan with numerous challenges, but ultimately Sean’s company, Living Stone Construction, achieved spectacular and award-winning results.
On February 5, 2014 Living Stone Construction was presented the Gold BALA Award (Best in American Living) for “Whole House Renovation” of the Bertsch-Furimsky project, which took place at the NAHB International Builders Show in Las Vegas, Nevada. Living Stone has won many awards on both the state and local levels, including in 2012 when they received the award for “Best Whole House Renovation” from the NCHBA for this same project. However, the Gold BALA award is the company’s first national honor.
Living Stone Construction had yet another successful showing at the 32nd annual Asheville Parade of Homes. On the weekends of October 12-13 and 19-20, people all over the area were able to visit Living Stone’s craftsmen built home “The Rockcliff”, which is located in the beautiful Southcliff development.
“The Rockcliff” which was designed by Jason Weil (Retro + Fit Design) and decorated by Laura Sullivan (ID.ology Interior Design), served as the front cover of the 2013 Parade of Homes magazine and drew in more traffic this year than in any other previous year. Over 100 people signed up to receive Living Stone Construction’s newsletter with design ideas for a potential future build with the company.
On September 17, Living Stone Construction attended the 2013 STARS Awards Gala in Charlotte, NC for the sixth straight year and hoped to have yet another successful evening. The STARS Awards Gala is a prestigious ceremony that recognizes residential custom homebuilders all throughout the state for their superb work during the year in a wide variety of categories. Living Stone went into the ceremony with high expectations and did not leave disappointed.
In all, Living Stone walked away with four awards, which included: Best Television Commercial (The Living Stone Difference), Best Brochure/Marketing Piece for a builder, Best Single-Family Detached Home with a sales price of $250,000-$500,000 (The Rockcliff Residence), and Best Addition (The Thiemkey addition). Living Stone was the only builder out of the Asheville HBA to receive awards that evening.
Living Stone Construction’s President, Sean Sullivan, and the Principal of ID.ology Interior Design, Laura Sullivan, recently traveled to Charlotte and completed the four-day CAPS course seminar and received accreditation in doing so. By completing this course, Sean and Laura are now considered Certified Aging-In-Place Specialists (CAPS), meaning they are well versed and obtain the necessary skills essential to competing in the fastest growing segment of the residential remodeling industry: home modifications for the aging-in-place.
Managing moisture in and around your home is one of the most important things you can do to ensure its longevity, make it comfortable to live in, and prevent damage to its contents.
The National Association of Home Builders’ MyHome Press has published a handbook for home owners, “Home Maintenance Made Easy,” and the excerpt below contains helpful advice on how to control your home’s moisture.
High Performance Home Benefits
New high performance homes incorporate the latest building science principles to control temperature and humidity, maintain indoor air quality and increase energy efficiency. Although your home may not include all of the latest air-sealing, ventilation, and moisture-management technology, you will be more comfortable in your home and it will last longer it you do everything possible to manage moisture. This includes replacing filters, controlling humidity, and—when outside air is cool and dry—allowing fresh air into your home.
And, we’re proud to be among the few builders who are certified to construct:
ENERGY STAR. It’s the little label with the big message: Better is Better. 
Living Stone is proud to offer new homes that have earned the ENERGY STAR® label. The ENERGY STAR label means that your new home has been designed and built to standards well above other homes in the market today. It means better quality, better comfort, and better durability. It also means that your new home is a better value for today, and a better investment for tomorrow. The ENERGY STAR label gives you the peace of mind that your home has undergone a better process for inspections, testing, and verification to ensure that it meets strict requirements set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). ENERGY STAR certified homes are better because they are designed and built to provide homeowners:
Peace of Mind. The result of a home that’s built better.
