Introducing the 2020 EverGreen Award Winners
The Green REsource Council recently unveiled its 2020 EverGreen Award winners, honoring those real estate professionals who have taken extraordinary measures to advance green building, develop their skills, and use their green know-how to better their communities and the real estate industry.
One of this year’s winners, Jeannette Moore, a broker at Green Florida Properties, has been an advocate for the green real estate community throughout her 35-year career. Not only has the Florida-based agent created courses about green building benefits, she has also taught the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) Green Designation program and has been part of numerous green awareness events within her community.
In addition, she has volunteered at the Florida Green Building Coalition as a board member and director since 2010—and is credited with creating the Realty, Appraiser, Builder Outreach Committee in order to bring awareness to the different sectors about the additional values associated with high-performance building.
Moore credits her involvement in these areas as a major source of her knowledge and comfort in advising customers who desire to live in a healthier home, as well as other real estate professionals who wish to do more.
“The interaction with so many like-minded people from different arenas has broadened my knowledge of green building. Prior to the pandemic, I would attend open houses to help listing agents identify green features in their listings and enter them correctly into the MLS. I became known as the Green real estate professional, and while some would shy away from me, others would welcome my input,” says Moore, who has earned the GRI (Graduate, REALTOR® Institute) and CRS (Certified Residential Specialist) designations.
It’s not just at work where Moore shows her love for the environment either. She also pens posts related to energy savings on her blog—www.GreenFLBroker.com—drives an electric car, and powers her home with solar panels and a Tesla battery back-up system.
Her devotion to the environment began back when she was a student at the University of Florida when she was among a group who worked on water pollution problems. Over the years, she’s been involved in Earth Day events, including having a booth representing her real estate company in recent years.
Winning the EverGreen Award has been a great honor, one which she believes could help her get the word out about the value of green and high-performance construction throughout Northeast Florida.
“I had finally made some headway in St. Augustine when the city created a Sustainability Council,” says Moore, who attended the first meeting and caught the attention of a couple of council people about the city becoming a green certified city. “Then the pandemic restrictions shut down all city meetings, and sustainability has again taken a back seat. My hope is that the media releases of my award will spur new interest in the area.”
Moore believes that green practices are just as important to customers, even if many do not understand the reason why.
“They may mention how their children are constantly ill, that they wake up stuffy in the morning, that the upstairs of their homes won’t cool, or other discomforts,” says Moore. “They don’t realize that many of the issues they mention may be related to their ‘leaky’ or unhealthy homes. When we view potential new homes for them, I try to point out features that may minimize many of their issues in one healthy home vs. another home that will probably be similar to the one they currently live in.”
Another honoree of the EverGreen Award is Rob Madden, designated broker/owner of Green Leaf Realty in Phoenix, Ariz., who specializes in selling solar homes throughout the Phoenix area.
“It is an honor to be recognized for the hard work and dedication that I have put into helping educate homebuyers on more sustainable and healthier options when buying a home without having to sacrifice price, location or features,” says Madden. “I love it when a client has an epiphany about how a home can affect the health of their family and realizes that they can save some money in the long run through energy efficiency and greener options.”
That’s why NAR’s Green Designation was a must for him when he began his career.
“I have always had a passion for the greener side of things, and to be able to formally incorporate the training and resources that NAR provides was essential to my career,” says Madden. “Green Leaf Realty was built upon the premise of providing sustainable options for homebuyers while helping green home sellers recognize the true value and benefit of the various green and sustainable features they have in their homes.”
For example, he notes that solar alone can add thousands of dollars in value to the home sale if sellers work with a listing agent who understands the benefits and communicates these features to buyers and appraisers.
“There are healthier and more sustainable options out there for homebuyers, and we strive to help them find those options within the constraints of their search criteria while being able to demonstrate and communicate the benefits of green and energy-efficient features of higher-performing homes,” says Madden.
Additionally, becoming certified as an energy auditor through the Building Performance Institute (BPI) has provided Madden with a more technical background into green and energy-efficient features.
“Being an energy auditor allows me to participate in programs like the Department of Energy’s Home Energy Score program and Pearl Home Certification where I can provide the technical data for a rating for a future listing,” he says. “Oftentimes, I encounter a seller who has added solar panels, has had the home professionally air sealed and has even added extra insulation, but never realizes that these improvements can add value to their home because no one ever takes the time to quantify the improvements and communicate them through the marketing to homebuyers or provide the data to an appraiser.”
These “hidden” features that so many sellers overlook have been known to boost home prices and shorten marketing times when homebuyers realize the benefits of all the hard work the seller has put into the property.
For more information, please visit green.realtor/evergreen_awards.
Keith Loria is a contributing editor to RISMedia.
