Home Builders' Evaluation of Acceptability of Solar and Earth‐Sheltered Housing Designs

Abstract

A statewide survey of home builders was conducted to discover their perceptions of the acceptability of current solar and earth‐sheltered housing designs. Analyses of responses from 182 home builders indicate that many perceive it difficult to obtain designs that consumers find attractive, that are acceptable within existing neighborhoods, that consumers find psychologically easy to live in, and that consistently work. The student's t‐test indicated that home builders who found it less difficult to obtain acceptable designs were more favorable toward the construction of solar and earth‐sheltered housing. Analyses of variance with the Least Significant Difference Test suggested that home builders who construct houses primarily in rural areas find it less difficult to obtain designs attractive to consumers and acceptable in existing neighborhoods than those who build homes primarily in urban areas.