Transcript 0:00 [gentle music] Buyers are willing to pay an extra dollar for a home if they understand it will ultimately lead to annual savings in utility costs. 0:11 In fact, this was an interesting number I found in the survey, 57% are willing to pay $5,000 or more on top of the price of a home in order to save $1,000 a year in their utilities. 0:31 [upbeat music] Welcome to The Peggy Smedley Show, the podcasting voice of IoT and digital transformation with your host, Peggy Smedley. 0:49 Hello, listeners, and welcome to today's edition of The Peggy Smedley Show. As always, I'm your host, Peggy Smedley. 0:55 Today on The Peggy Smedley Show, I'll be talking all about sustainable homes, specifically, how will the trends among the various generations impact sustainability in our homes and what technologies are most popular? 1:09 There's a lot of research to dig into, and I have two really big questions I want us to consider today, and I have some thoughts about what needs to happen next. 1:20 Later on in the show, I'm really excited, I'm gonna have a couple of really great guests for us to talk to, but we have a very special 45-minute segment. 1:29 I'll be welcoming back Michael Walton, Industry Solution Executive for the manufacturing industry at Microsoft, and he's gonna be joined with Tim Linsenmaier, Chief Technology Officer of Clover Imaging Group, and we're gonna be talking about supply chains, manufacturing, and an incredible workforce. 1:48 But first, let's talk all about sustainable homes. Generational trends are impacting nearly every industry. This is true for our homes. Let's start by looking at what the baby boomers are doing. 2:02 Now, this is pretty interesting. If they are moving, the interesting part is they're not downsizing from all these big homes that they've had over the years. 2:11 In fact, the 2021 Home Buyer and Sellers Generational Trends Report from the National Association of Realtors suggests that baby boomers make up the largest share of the sellers market at 43%. 2:29 Now, here's what I find truly interesting about this report. When selling, baby boomers trade for a home that has a difference of less than 100 square feet. Essentially, they are trading for a similar size home. 2:45 And then there are, of course, the millennials and the younger home buyers. The millennials continue to make up the largest share of home buyers at roughly 37%. 2:57 So if the baby boomers aren't downsizing, what does this mean for the rest of all the generations? When looking at all of this data, I have a couple of questions I want us to kind of walk through today. 3:11 Now, here's the first question: Where are we going to find the land? If we are following Construction Magazine that we talk about at Constructek, then you know the housing industry is facing a number of challenges. 3:24 I've highlighted the lumber shortage. We've talked about that, kind of a rollercoaster if you think about it. It keeps going up and up, then it's been coming down. We've talked about the worker shortage. 3:33 We all know what's been happening there, and I did an entire segment on it, I'd say, eh, I guess maybe a month ago, and I argued that there's technically no such thing as a talent crunch. 3:45 Rather, employers are experiencing a disconnect with how they source and select their talent, but I digress. So let's kind of get back to what we're talking about today. What is the bigger problem? 3:57 In either way, but the land shortage is also a challenge that is very present today in every part of it, and then we think about it since the pandemic hit, and it really is kind of something we need to kind of peel back the onion. 4:11 Back in January of 2020, roughly 58% of single family builders said the supply of lots was either low or very low. 4:22 Now, this is a real problem if you think about it, because the three Ls are creating real havoc on the housing market. We're looking at labor, land, and lumber. 4:32 But there is something else we need to consider amid all of this: sustainability. So here is my second question that I want you to consider for today. How will we ultimately make up the structures more sustainable? 4:47 We need to consider how we're going to build or renovate homes to be more sustainable for generations to come. We need to figure out how we are going to get baby boomers to consider a more sustainable living. 5:03 So let's look at some of the sustainable trends in homes today. For baby boomers, the most important environmentally friendly features include... Now, I wonder what you're thinking about right now. 5:15 It's heating and cooling costs, and windows, doors, and siding. Now, what comes next? Energy efficient lighting and energy efficient appliances. Now, here's the problem. 5:28 Solar panels ranked very low among all generations, but we really need to be thinking about how are we going to be looking at solar in the next few years, the next decade. 5:40 Perhaps we need to look at this from a different perspective. Let's take a closer look at it from a technology-focused view, because I think that's what we all need to be considering. 5:51 The National Association of Home Builders conducted a study, and the report concluded what home buyers really want. 5:59 So let's look at the top five technology features wanted in a home from their perspective, and they include a programmable thermostat-Security cameras, a video doorbell, wireless home security systems, and I'll bet you all can figure this one, it's a multi-zone HVAC system. 6:21 Now, notice the theme here, and I think if you're kind of paying attention to what I'm talking about, all of these top technology either deal with energy efficiency or home security. 6:32 Now, that's a step, I think, if I'm looking at it and the way I talk about technology all the time, it's a step in the right direction, but we're still not there yet. 6:41 So digging deeper when looking specifically at green features, the top five most wanted are Energy Star windows, Energy Star appliances, efficient lighting, Energy Star ratings for the whole home, which is great, and a triple pane insulating glass windows. 7:01 So again, we're going there, but now here's the challenge. I'm going to lay it all out and be very candid here. 7:08 So let's kind of, let's, you know, I, I'm not gonna be contrarian or anything, but I really wanna kind of dig deeper into this. 7:15 The survey also shows while the majority of buyers are concerned about the impact of building their home environment, only 15% are actually willing to put out the money for an environmentally friendly home. Only 15%. 7:33 Let's be honest here. If only 15% are willing to do it, the reality is green homes have a lot more problem, and they don't make dollars and sense. It's just not making... W- we've got a bigger problem we have to address. 7:46 So ultimately, they support our environmental, social, and economic wellbeing, but we're not there yet in convincing people this is the direction we have to go. 7:57 They bring us cleaner indoor air, and they prioritize the things we want to do, but we've got to focus on what are we gonna do to get us there. So what are we gonna do to help us understand the needs? 8:10 So let me give you some very specific example that most of us can relate to today. Air quality. We've seen what's happened with COVID and everything like this. 8:20 So concentrations of some pollutants are two to five times higher indoors than outdoors. You know, LEED homes maximize indoor fresh air. 8:33 In times of COVID, you would think that alone would be enough to persuade buyers. 8:40 Most of us would think that, but our memories become short, and we go back to our daily lives, and as a result, the bottom line is still a key factor. There's a catch though, and I think this is very important. 8:55 Buyers are willing to pay an extra dollar for a home if they understand it will ultimately lead to annual savings in utility costs. In fact, this was an interesting number I found in the survey. 9:10 57% are willing to pay $5,000 or more on top of the price of a home in order to save $1,000 a year in their utilities. $1,000. That's great. 9:25 But is this what the survey really is revealing? It says, "So perhaps the solution is getting very, very clear about the potential return on our investment in a sustainable home." 9:39 So I think what we really need to be talking about here is we need to show the results of what a sustainable home is going to be and prove there's a real ROI behind all the talk. 9:53 So let me, let me outline my opinion for today because I think that's really important of where we're going to be in getting us to where we need to be with all of this, and I think that's very, very important. 10:05 So general trends are impacting nearly every vertical market. We've talked about this. This is certainly the case with our homes and our communities. 10:14 Will the younger generations help spur the move to these more sustainable homes? 10:21 It's easier, I think, said than done, and we're seeing that already, especially if there isn't the land or the materials available, as we're seeing with lumber, to build these wonderful homes that we've been talking about here at Constructek, or Connected World, or Sustainable in a Circular World, as I've written about in my book. 10:41 We need to find a way to get all of these generations that we've talked, these five generations, interested in sustainable homes. Do we need to present it in terms of a better ROI, a better return on investment? 10:55 Simply, it's time, I think, to walk the sustainable talk. I think governments need to make a greater investment to help buyers and sellers want to be involved in this. 11:08 Simply, if we don't walk that sustainable talk, it's not gonna get there. We're not going to see it. Do we need to make those numbers really clear? We can't be saying it's going to be a great investment in 100 years. 11:21 It's gotta be a better investment now. Do we need to persuade each of the generations differently? I absolutely think we do. 11:29 Every generation sees it differently, so I think this is the question earlier, and I will ask it again now. How do we get baby boomers to look at getting their homes more sustainable? 11:41 We need sustainability in all areas of our lives, in our transportation systems, in our businesses, and certainly in our homes. And I'm not sure if we're moving fast enough here. 11:55 I think we've gotta move much faster, and I think we've gotta encourage everyone to understand it. If we want to make our planet more sustainable for future generations, we need to act now. 12:06 And I'm not saying the world's coming to a gray world right today, but if we don't want it to be as gray every day, we need to start moving that needle, as I always say. 12:19 We need to move from gray to green, or it's gonna be more gray every day. And so that's means we need to start all working together to kind of make it a little more green. 12:29 And I think those are the things we have to encourage all the generations to understand. 12:34 And right now I think the way we do it is we start seeing ways we can be more efficient and more effective in our homes as we are in our businesses. And I think those are the exciting things. All right. 12:45 Well, I'm certainly out of time for this segment, but as always, you know what I want you to do, I want you to tweet at me @ConnectedWMag. 12:51 I want you to tell me what you think, and I'd love to hear whether you agree with me, whether, as I like to say, you have a contrarian opinion on this, but that's the way we all learn from each other. 13:00 We all want, in a respectful way, and sometimes we might, you know, we might not agree, but that's the way we grow. We learn from each other. But as this time, you know, again, share your thoughts with me @ConnectedWMag. 13:11 We're gonna take a quick break, but then we are gonna learn a whole lot of things about the supply chain and manufacturing. So all right. 13:18 As always, this is The Peggy Smedley Show, the podcast and voice of IoT and digital transformation. And remember, with great technology comes great responsibility. We'll be right back after this quick commercial break. 13:28 [upbeat music]
