RUSKIN, Fla. — Imagine living in a home that with virtually no energy costs, lower insurance rates and is strong enough to withstand a major hurricane.
Now, imagine it’s affordable housing.
There’s a housing development taking shape in Hillsborough County that could set the standard not just for low-income construction but home-building at virtually any price-point.
They’re called net-zero energy homes. Not just affordable on day one but built to be affordable for years to come.
“We have a crisis,” Hillsborough County Commissioner Kimberly Overman said. “We have over 100,000 people looking for portable housing. And this is one way that we can make it best happen.”
Home prices have been outpacing income in the Tampa Bay area, so Hillsborough County Commissioners teamed up with a group called Florida Home Partnership. Along with a $150,000 grant from Wells Fargo, they’re building seven houses considered so efficient, they’re designed to cost almost nothing to run.
“When a family can afford the home they live in, guess what? Our economy thrives,” Overman said. “And it increases the demand of jobs and other opportunities for people in our community.”
The net-zero energy houses are built with designs and materials aimed at keeping future costs down, like interlocking styrofoam bricks and insulation to drastically reduce energy needs. There will be also solar panels to supply that power and are projected to keep electric bills under $20 a month.
Hurricane resistant features include metal roofs and solid concrete walls to keep maintenance and insurance costs down, too.
“Everything just adds up,” Construction Manager Jody Fitzgerald said. “It may be in little pieces to some people, but over the lifetime of the house it’s real money.”
The houses, which are being built in Ruskin, are expected to be finished sometime this summer.
Prospective owners must have a household income of 80 percent or below the median income for Hillsborough County, which is currently about $53,000 for a family of four.
George Vallejo, who was selected for phase one of the project, says it’s changed his life.
“I couldn’t buy anything because there was no money left over,” Vallejo said. “Every month the money would run out. But, now, I’ve got plenty of space and plenty of money.”
The net-zero energy concept is something the county hopes will inspire home designers at all price points: Safe, efficient, designed to withstand Florida’s natural and economic challenges.
It’s possible, they say, if prospective buyers demand it.
“What we want to do is start the conversation about what’s possible with technology that’s right there, right now,” Mike Morina, Executive Director of Florida Home Partnership, said.
“The good news is we have a growing economy,” Overman said. “But we need housing for people to live in. And this is one way to make that happen.”
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