Everyone should have a great place to live: somewhere safe, comfortable and healthy that's also energy efficient and durable so it’s affordable to own and occupy. The good news is there are lots of options, and when you know what to look for, you can find the right high performance home for your family. You will need to ask some questions and dig a little deeper than surface appearance, but the extra effort is worth it.

Understand that your house is a system. Every house is made of three major areas that interact with one another. The building envelope (shell) is made up of the roof, walls, foundation, windows and doors. Its job is to protect the interior from the elements and allow us to control temperature and humidity levels with the second element: the heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) system.

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