Ashton Woods Homes Recognized With 2009 Energy Star-Leadership in Housing Award

Ashton Woods Homes Recognized With 2009 Energy Star-Leadership in Housing Award - Ashton Woods Homes Earns Award for Building new Homes that Protect the Environment Through Energy Efficiency

ORLANDO, Fla. – Ashton Woods Homes was recently recognized by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) with a 2009 ENERGY STAR Leadership in Housing Award. The award recognizes the important contribution Ashton Woods Homes has made to energy-efficient construction and environmental protection by building more than 1,202 ENERGY STAR qualified homes last year. Collectively, these homes will save its customers approximately $537,294 on utility bills each year.

The environmental benefits of ENERGY STAR qualified homes are equal to the equivalent of:
•Eliminating the emissions from 589 vehicles;
•Saving 3,562,728 trees;
•Planting 1,201 acres of trees; or
•Saving the environment 6,987,226 pounds of CO2 per year.

To earn the ENERGY STAR, a home must meet strict guidelines for energy efficiency set by the EPA. These homes are at least 15 percent more energy efficient than homes built to the 2004 International Residential Code (IRG), and include additional energy-saving features that typically make them 20-30 percent more efficient than standard homes.

“We’ve been building ENERGY STAR compliant homes for eight years now and energy savings continues to be a very successful benefit of owning an Ashton Woods home,” said John Reny, division president of Ashton Woods Homes in the Orlando region.

ENERGY STAR qualified homes offer homebuyers all the features they want in a new home, plus energy-saving features like effective insulation systems, high performance windows, tight construction and ducts, properly-sized and installed efficient heating and cooling equipment, efficient products, and third-party verification of energy performance. “Most homebuyers focus on what’s outside the walls,” said Sam Rashkin, national director for EPA’s ENERGY STAR Homes Program, “but they also need to look behind the walls for the energy-efficient features found in ENERGY STAR qualified homes that help ensure comfort, quiet, improved indoor air quality and low utility bills for years to come.”

About Ashton Woods Homes:

Ashton Woods Homes is a subsidiary of the Great Gulf Group – a fully-integrated collection of companies that spans the entire real estate spectrum in North America – from land acquisition and development to the design and construction of master-planned communities. For more information, visit www.ashtonwoodshomes.com/powerhouse. (770)998-9663.

About ENERGY STAR:

ENERGY STAR was introduced by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in 1992 as a voluntary market-based partnership to reduce greenhouse gas emissions through increased energy efficiency. Today, ENERGY STAR offers businesses and consumers energy-efficient solutions to save energy, money and help protect the environment for future generations. More than 12,000 organizations are ENERGY STAR partners committed to improving the energy efficiency of products, homes, buildings and businesses. For more information about ENERGY STAR, visit http://www.energystar.gov/ or call toll-free 1-888-STAR-YES (1-888-782-7937).

Contact:

Michael Roche, VP Sales & Marketing Ashton Woods Homes-Orlando/Tampa, 407-647-3700; mroche@ashtonwoodshomes.com;

John Reny, President, Ashton Woods Homes-Orlando/Tampa 407-647-3700; jreny@ashtonwoodshomes.com;

Tad Serbin, Vice President Sales & Marketing, Ashton Woods Homes 770-998-9663;Tserbin@ashtonwoodshomes.com;

Larry Vershel or Beth Payan, Larry Vershel Communications, 407-644-4142; lvershelco@aol.com