KB Home (NYSE: KBH) announced a new initiative to provide solar power systems for its new homes as a standard feature in 10 Southern California communities. The photovoltaic solar systems will help KB homeowners reduce their monthly energy bills and cost of homeownership for years to come, while also benefiting the environment.
"KB Home is already a leader in building energy-efficient homes that can provide homeowners with meaningful savings on their monthly energy bills," said Jeffrey Mezger, president and chief executive officer of KB Home. "With this announcement, we are raising the bar even higher and taking an important step in making our homes even more efficient and affordable for our homebuyers over the long term, especially when compared to resale homes."
"If consumers respond as positively as we expect to the tremendous financial and environmental advantages of these homes in the marketplace, we plan to expand this industry-leading initiative to our other markets across the country," continued Mezger.
While KB Home has provided solar power systems as an option for its homebuyers in select communities in California and Colorado for a number of years, this is the first time it will build entire communities featuring solar power systems for every home. SunPower Corp. (Nasdaq: SPWRA, SPWRB), a leading manufacturer of the highest efficiency, highest reliability solar panels and systems available today, will provide the solar technology. When combined with the many additional energy-conserving features KB Home includes in all of its new homes across the country, these 10 Southern California communities will offer some of the most efficient new homes available on the market today at an affordable price. The solar power systems could also help qualify homeowners for a federal tax credit.
"By offering solar power systems as a standard feature on their award-winning homes, KB Home is providing homebuyers a secure, reliable alternative to electricity sourced from non-renewable fossil fuels," said Jim Pape, president of SunPower's residential and commercial business group. "We are pleased to partner with KB Home as they embark on this exciting initiative to help their homeowners take control of their energy usage and reduce their electricity costs."
KB Home has already begun offering the solar power systems at its Newbury at the Enclave community in Eastvale, Manzanita at Paseo del Sol community in Temecula and Monterey at Otay Ranch community in Chula Vista. Five additional Southern California communities featuring solar power systems for every home will open over the next sixty days, and two more are expected to open in the fall of 2011.
To better illustrate the advantages of owning a new energy-efficient KB home, last month the company announced it is now including the KB Home Energy Performance Guide™ (EPG) in all of its new homes. Similar to an MPG sticker on cars, the KB Home EPG provides KB homebuyers with estimated monthly electric and gas costs for their new KB home as designed, as well as valuable information on the home's relative energy efficiency when compared to a typical new home or resale home. The KB Home EPGs for the homes located in these 10 Southern California communities will reflect the additional energy efficiency provided by the solar power systems.