The future of energy-efficient housing in Calgary has been given a boost, with a major homebuilder now offering a net-zero option on all its models.

Jayman Built recently unveiled its Quantum Performance Ultra E-Home upgrade, which results in a home designed and constructed to produce as much energy as it consumes on an annual basis.

With electric vehicles (EVs) touted as the wave of the future, many homeowners considering a switch from gas are left wondering whether their home can handle the charging needs of a battery-powered car, truck or SUV.

As temperatures rise, so too does interest in enjoying the sun from the comfort of one's home, and a sunroom is one option that is easy to warm up to.

Smart and green technologies recently considered luxuries are becoming increasingly important to Calgary homebuyers, and the city's homebuilders have taken this to heart.

Airdrie resident and REALTOR® Matt Carre was always a big-city guy. He was born in Montreal and grew up in Toronto, with a few years spent in major U.S. centres. In 2004, he moved to Calgary.

But in 2006, he left the big city and moved to Airdrie with his wife and fellow Realtor Michelle, who was born and raised in the charming, community-centric city of just over 68,000 people. It didn't take long for him to change his allegiances.

When Brian Taylor looks out the window of his home in EchoHaven, the view is a street lined with houses of varying architectural styles.

However, beneath the surface, many of those homes have similar characteristics designed to make them eco-friendly and highly energy efficient in a development purposefully built with no natural gas service.

More than 750 new single-family homes in Alberta will be powered by solar this year, as Jayman Built makes the green technology a standard feature in a first-of-its-kind offering by any Canadian builder.

Alternative power sources for off-the-grid acreage living

Alternative energy sources like wind and solar were once viewed as novel concepts that would never become practical for the average homeowner. Alternative energy sources like wind and solar were once viewed as novel concepts that would never become practical for the average homeowner. However, for many acreage owners and other rural residents, going off the grid – living in a self-sufficient manner without reliance on one or more public utilities – is catching on in a variety of forms.