Renewable Energy Grows in 2013

Solar and other forms of renewable energy are no longer the exceptions to how homes/buildings are developed...they are becoming the standard for how Developers must find a perfect balance between building affordable, desirable, valuable and most importantly sustainable homes! Check the facts!

We're back and working feverishly on our newest project - MZ Living in the heart of downtown Scottsdale.  MZ will be the first Net Zero Energy multi-family townhome in Scottsdale that will not only offer the style you have come to expect from Modus projects but our commitment to incorporate the newest in sustainable and smart home technologies and design features...and oh yes, it doesn't hurt that we are walking distance to everything that downtown Scottsdale has to offer!

Come check us out at www.mzliving.com and please start to follow us on https://www.facebook.com/MZliving!

Going Green to Save Green

[Source: Arizona Republic - Home] People who are looking to buy home now want them to be green - not only eco-friendly green, but economically green.

"Saving money is the Number 1 thing when it comes to green," says Ed Gorman, founder of Modus Development, which built Galleries at Turney, an "urban green" development in central Phoenix.

More than low-VOC paints and how the wood is engineered - and way above saving water - it's money."

At The Galleries at Turney, the utility bill for a 2,000-square foot home is about $125 in the middle of summer. "That's what gets people's attention," he says. "I firmly believe that in five years everything built will have to be green, whether LEED or some other standard. What will drive it? Whether demand by consumer or required by the government, some source will have to make it."

This urban oasis of eight homes by Modus Development is the first community in Arizona to be LEED certified. LEED stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design and is a national benchmark of standards for eco-friendly building.

One of the most striking aspects is the exterior. The houses are covered in corrugated zinc that's suspended off the walls by an inch, which lets hot air flow behind it and continuously shades the building, Gorman says, adding, "Architects come from around the world to see it."
The roof includes a reflective coating to keep it cool.

The homes were built on a plot of land that used to include two-single family houses. With desert landscaping, controlled irrigation and other water-saving features, Gorman estimates the eight homes use less water than the two houses that were there before.

Still the homes have to be appealing, so the builder included a wall of glass that treated to resist heat transfer. The homes include energy efficient Bosch appliances and are pre-wired for solar power.

Lower Fuel and Home Prices Stall Green Building

By CHRIS KAHNAP Energy Writer
Homebuilders slapped on solar panels and added other eco-friendly enhancements as energy prices soared earlier this year, hoping greener homes would lure reluctant buyers. But since July, the cost of oil has plunged from $147 a barrel to about $36, while home prices continued to fall. Together, these headwinds have...

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Green Development - A Proactive Approach...

Modus is one of the first proactive Green Developers of residential properties in the greater Phoenix area. We recycle older, existing urban properties to create living and working areas that blend style, natural resources and eco-friendly building techniques/materials that not only meet the needs of its inhabitants, but those who occupy the environment surrounding it. The creation of these state-of-the-art work and life sites are not only designed with the needs of today, but a vision of the standards for the future. We acquire and develop sites in prime locations that are underutilized in their current state, where development further enhances land value and improves the quality of life for those who live and/or work there.

We actively seek older urban sites and “reinvent” them to create innovative and stylish, environmentally friendly properties for residential, commercial and mixed-use projects. Modus develops innovative buildings with modern, cutting-edge designs that create spaces that reflect the style and needs of the people who live and work there.

Modus examines each site in context to its surroundings as its overall location. Each property represents a unique opportunity to construct residential, commercial, or mixed-use developments that transform the visual identity of the metropolitan area. In a time when the city is continually expanding outward, there is a new desire to live in downtown urban districts where workplace proximity and cultural intensity are blended together to create fulfilling lifestyles. Urban infill/recycled land projects within these downtown core districts have several advantages over the typical suburban development. Sites are close and often within walking distance to existing amenities such as restaurants, entertainment, transportation, schools as well as the workplace.

As an added advantage, Infill/recycled sites typically allow designs to be more inventive in diagrammatic and building detail – adding to the value of the building project as well a providing a means to "scrub" the property from older existing structures that are unsafe, unattractive and potentially a bio-hazard.

Modus currently has two projects under way in the Phoenix and Scottsdale areas, The Galleries at Turney and Array-Scottsdale with a third soon-to-be- announced. What each of these projects has in common is a totally Urban Green approach to development, design and construction including:

• Efficient use of existing space within the urban environment
• Close proximity to transportation, work and play
• Energy efficient appliances, fixtures, windows, doors and insulation
• Green building techniques and recycled materials
• Spacious interiors with flexible rooms to meet individual needs for home or home/office.
• Custom craftsmanship and sustainable design/construction
• Stylish use of natural and recycled materials inside and out
• Built for low pollution, minimal energy loss and high ROI

Yet at the same time, what makes each of these projects unique is:

• Efficient use of existing space within the urban environment
• Close proximity to transportation, work and play
• Energy efficient appliances, fixtures, windows, doors and insulation
• Green building techniques and recycled materials
• Spacious interiors with flexible rooms to meet individual needs for home or home/office.
• Custom craftsmanship and sustainable design/construction
• Stylish use of natural and recycled materials inside and out
• Built for low pollution, minimal energy loss and high RO
• Unique design created to its specific location and surrounding environment
• Innovative use of local natural resources like land, wind, sun, soil, water, vegetation, stone and line-of-sight
• Creative use of existing land and location to blend into their environments rather than using a "cookie-cutter" approach. After all, what fits into the desert doesn't necessarily fit into an urban environment and vice versa.
• Unique use of natural and/or recycled stone, metal, ceramic, concrete and glass materials State-of-the-art technology to minimize the impact and use of natural resources (e.g. Solar Panels to create a "Zero Energy Consumption Home."

That’s the vision of Modus Development and the green homes we have and will continue to build in the Phoenix/Scottsdale Arizona...