Keith is an accredited Homestar® Assessor, (Reg#6868), and also an accredited Homestar® Practitioner. Homestar® is an initiative of the New Zealand Green Building Council, and others, with the objective to “… improve the performance and reduce the environmental impact of new and existing New Zealand dwellings, making them warm, healthy, comfortable places to live.”
Homestar ratings are gaining public acceptance in Auckland and Christchurch, with the other centres following behind. Territorial Authorities are beginning to offer planning and financial incentives to Developers if a minimum number of housing units are constructed to a particular minimum Homestar® Rating. Keith is able to assist Designers and Developers, as a secondary consultant, with these projects. These requirements are normally for a 6 or 7 Homestar® rating.
To gain more than 7 stars, (subject of course to sufficient other Credits), the thermal performance of the dwelling must be assessed by computer modelling. AccuRateNZ, as used by EcoRate Ltd, is approved for these assessments. The results of NZBC-H1 compliance, or minimal energy usage, computer analysis can be directly transferred to the Homestar® assessment.
The use of 'Star-Ratings', as a measure of a house's environmental appropriateness, is becoming common in countries that are looking to the future. In some of these certain minimum levels are mandatory, and there is no reason why this might not also be the case in New Zealand in the coming years. At least it can be certain that the levels of basic insulation required for a Building Consent will rise with time, as already has been happening over the past decades.
As a Homestar® Practitioner, and Registered Architect, Keith can evaluate a proposed dwelling or apartment complex and comment on those areas where effective investments can be made towards future-proofing those parts of the project that will be inaccessible at a later time. While only a completed house can be assessed for a Homestar™ Star-rating, an early evaluation against the criteria, at the planning stage, can suggest where maximum points could be gained for the formal ‘As-Built’ assessment.
The Real Estate industry is very interested in the voluntary Homestar® rating scheme, with its formal Built Certificate, because purchasers are becoming aware of the value of an independent objective assessment of a home's environmental characteristics, in the same way as consumers are taking notice of the star-ratings of consumer products in the market place. Being an accredited Homestar® Assessor, Keith is able to undertake these independent assessments.
To assist the marketing of residential developments an interim Homestar® Design-Rating can be issued based on the tender documentation. Upon completion of the construction the ‘as-built’ conformation assessment is made and the formal Homestar® Built-Rating is issued.
Check out my latest article on EBOSS https://www.eboss.co.nz/detailed/keith-huntington
CONTACT DETAILS: Please feel free to contact Keith for his C.V. and summary of experience. tel: 04 499-3015 mble: 021 890 251 e-mail: keith@settlement.co.nz
Keith Huntington - B.Arch, Dip.Urb.Val, Dip Bus.Stud(Disp.Res), FNZIA, FAMINZ(Med), LEADR Registered Architect (RAB# 1372) and NZGBC Homestar™ Practitioner & Assessor (reg# 6868)
