Sustainable Home Development, Construction, and Property Management: Project Intent

Project Intent
In the late 1970s, an environmentally sustainable community of homes in Davis, California was built called Village Homes. This community was the first of its kind and has remained one of the most valuable and sought-after places to live since its initial construction. In an age where Green awareness has saturated so many parts of our culture, it seems strange that nearly no other developers have copied the Village Homes’ model. The following is an investigation as to why this method of green home building has not yet caught on, and to help figure out how to encourage more home development companies to switch to this Green model. The eventual goal is to prove that this method of building is not only environmentally conscious, but also can help bolster sales and strengthen business for companies who subscribe to this new model.

The investigation will center around a Real Estate Development, Construction, and Property management firm in the San Francisco Bay Area we will call Company X Properties (or CXP). This business currently constructs, owns and manages residential apartment communities throughout California and is looking to possibly begin investing in home development and sales, if it proves to be profitable. As the situation stands already, CXP has many possibilities for retrofitting their apartments to include solar power, grey water systems, natural drainage, and low-water landscaping.

This project will research the following investigations and practices, which will be presented to CXP and its partners in the late Fall:

• The Village Homes Community in Davis, CA (which includes private residences and several green apartment complexes)
• The Costs and Benefits of Solar Power in an Apartment Community
• Why a recently constructed Green Community in the Bay Area is failing in initial sales
• How Green construction practices can easily and cost effectively be implemented in CXP’s current construction projects
• Why the adoption of a Green Business Model insures the company’s continued success in a changing market.