Daybreak Wins Community of the Year

The National Association of Home Builders has awarded Daybreak Community of the Year for 2010. The Best in American Living Awards (BALA) is an organization that recognizes those who have achieved superior levels of creativity and innovation in their designs for residential development on a macro and micro scale. Judging is conducted by an expert panel of builders, design professionals, marketing professionals, land planners, interior designers and editors. The judging criteria for community of the year:

•Exterior design/curb appeal
•Site Plan
•Construction quality/cost efficiency
•Product sales success

As you can see one of the best indicators of winning the award is product sales success. As the Daybreak community was ranked as the sixth best selling master planned community in the United States for 2009 by RCLCO (Robert Charles Lesser & Co., LLC, it is no surprise that they were in good standing to win this award.

Daybreak also received the 2010 BALA Platinum Award for Suburban Smart Growth Community. This award is judged on the following criteria:

•Protect and provide access to the natural environment
•Incorporate a mix of land uses
•Use land in an efficient and innovative manner
•Encourage multiple transportation options
•Be pedestrian-scaled and pedestrian-friendly
•Provide housing choices
•Respect local traditions
•Utilize infill opportunities
•Deliver a genuine experience of place
•Create jobs and affect the economic environment

With Daybreak's commercial center, TRAX, mix of housing options and new urban design, a platinum award in this category is no surprise.

On a side note, while this is not exactly braking news I will be catching up on events that concern Daybreak that have happened in during my long break.

Building in Daybreak with Brick

Daybreak, as Kennecott Land has eagerly advertised, is a sustainable community and therefore uses sustainable materials in the construction of homes and other buildings. Of course, not all the materials are sustainable, but sustainable materials are definitely emphasized in construction. With this in mind I have looked at the materials used to build many of the homes in Daybreak. These consist primarily of fiber cement siding and stucco. There are very few homes that have been built with what I consider to be one of the best building materials: brick.

I should make it clear that I am not a materials engineer, home builder or sustainability expert. However, I do think that there are simple reasons for using this material more in the construction of Daybreak homes and commercial buildings. Brick may not be the first thing you think of when considering sustainable building as it is primarily thought of as a traditional building material, but lets look a little deeper. What is brick made from? Most bricks are made from clay and water. Both are a sustainable, non-toxic, abundant and can definitely be made locally.

Next, how much energy does it take to make a brick and transport it to a building site? This is one of the primary arguments against the use of brick. It does take a lot of energy as brick must be heated to an extraordinary temperature during the manufacturing process. However, I think that this is offset by how long brick lasts. Bricks resist the elements far longer than stucco or any type of siding. During the life of a home, stucco and siding will be painted and eventually replaced multiple times. Brick, however can last a hundred years or more if used and constructed properly. As for transportation costs, bricks have been made in the Salt Lake Valley for ages. Transportation from the actual production site to Daybreak would literally be only a few miles. In fact, if I am not mistaken, Interstate Brick company is located in West Jordan .

Benefits of brick according to the AIA (American Institute of Architects):

• Durability: Brick is resistant to damage from wind and water, and does not need additional finishes.
• Compressive Strength: Brick can carry heavy loads, but it is often used as a veneer over a separate structural system because of cost. Many brick manufacturers provide larger brick sizes to be used in a single wythe (layer) for load bearing.
• Acoustical Performance: Brick’s mass makes it good for reducing sound transmission; however, its hard surface reflects sound.
• Chemical Makeup: Brick’s raw materials are chemically inert; consequently, they will not contribute to indoor air pollution.
• Fire-Protection: Brick is nonflammable and makes an excellent fire barrier. After brick has been used in a structure it can easily be recycled to be used in new structures.

Considering this, I think that a long-term perspective should be taken on sustainable building in Daybreak. New technologies in sustainable building products are impressive, but considering the information above, the primitive brick may be a low technology solution to sustainable design. You may even argue that brick costs more and you would be correct. However, brick homes tend to appraise for more money and again if you are looking at the long-term, you will not have to replace the outside of your home when the mortgage has finally been paid.

Daybreak Home Sales Slump

The latest home sale stats for Daybreak indicate that the community has more than a year's worth of inventory. In fact, according to the Wasatch Front MLS and Corie Seymour, there are 49 houses currently on the market in Daybreak. That number does not even include new construction in Eastlake or the condos in Founders. While 34 homes were closed (sold) in the first three months of this year, these sales could represent deals made as far back as 6 months. A better indicator is the number of homes put under contract since the beginning of the year. This number is a dismal 12 homes. Can you say buyer's market?

On the new home construction front, Daybreak homebuilders are trying to weather the storm offering incentives that have been promoted by the Smart Buy program. Considering the current state of the market some home builders seem to be doing well, while others have had contracts canceled and are looking to unload inventory quickly. People buying right now definitely have negotiating power with the homebuilders.

I for one sincerely hope that the home builders will be able to sell more homes in the coming months. I imagine that Kennecott Land needs to sell more plots to the homebuilders to maintain cash flow for the company. However, as altruistic as Rio Tinto (owner of Kennecott Land) may seem, they need to be able to produce a profit. I think they will in the long term if they stick with their current plan. However, if for some reason a decision maker decides to take a short-term perspective on things, then the plan that is Daybreak will likely not be realized.

Rio Tinto could have easily sold off Kennecott owned land in chunks to cookie-cutter developers and industrial companies, but Rio Tinto has a sustainability philosophy that pushed the idea of Daybreak forward. In the news today you might have seen that Suncrest, a developer in Draper, filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy. In this case homeowners like that the development will be sold to another developer. Their community has already realized its purpose. The Daybreak community, on the other hand, is the spark of development that will light the entire West side of Salt Lake County with sustainable development. In my opinion Utah needs sustainable development. All we can do is wait and see...

Daybreak Energy Star = Money & Green

If you live in Daybreak take a moment and look at some of your appliances. See that little blue energy star logo? That little logo equals green. All homes that have been built in Daybreak are energy star qualified. Most home owners look at this as a bonus, but don't really see the whole picture. Obviously it saves you money on your utility bills, but energy star qualified homes can do much more than that. For starters, did you know that you can apply for an energy-efficient mortgage? FHA energy-efficient mortgages allow lenders to add the additional cost of energy efficiency improvements to an already approved mortgage loan (as long as the additional costs do not exceed $4000 or 5% of the value of the home, up to a maximum of $8000, whichever is greater). This won't help you qualify for a loan, but may help you put some of those nice upgrades that you want with no additional down payment.

Being able to advertise that your home is energy-star qualified also makes your home more competitive in the market, especially a buyer's market. The trend is catching on too. The EPA predicts that over two million homes will be constructed to energy star standards before 2010. Not bad when you calculate that each home will save up to 30% on utility bills and use that much less energy. Multiply those two figures together with the average utility bill and you get millions of dollars saved. Maybe less fossil fuel power plants as well. Considering that the energy that homes use account for 20% of carbon dioxide emissions, this is a big step in the right direction. In fact, the energy you use at home pollutes the environment more than your car.

But how does a home become energy star qualified? When I first noticed the energy star designation I thought a few windows, some good insulation, efficient appliances - that's good. I thought that the builder just used certain materials for construction, but there is a little more to it than that. When Gold Medallion Homes builds a row house in Daybreak an independent inspector comes by and inspects the work. This inspector conducts on site testing and inspections to verify the energy efficiency measures, as well as insulation, air tightness, and duct sealing details. They point an infrared camera at a window to see how well it is insulating among other things. The home builders know that they will be inspected so they have to make sure the work is quality or it will not get certified, but builders benefit too. They can get up to $2000 as a tax credit for energy star qualified homes.

The biggest perk is your month to month savings. The gas bill for January in my old house ran as high as $250. Yes, the house was old. My current bill is not even close. I save at least 80$ a month over what I paid previously in utilities (Covers the HOA fee). The energy star compliance is also part of the sustainability principle of new urbanism. In fact, Daybreak has an almost 20% market share on energy star homes in Utah. So when you see the energy star logo think green.