News and Insights

When Janelle McGill got her NAR Green Designation in 2017, she decided to make solar education a centerpiece of her green niche.

Her interest in solar was sparked by a friend’s Facebook post warning followers to avoid putting solar panels on their homes.

With the abundance of green home certifications, it can be hard to keep track of all of the programs, whether they’re regional ones like Washington state’s Built Green and North Carolina’s Green Built Homes, or the big national ones.

This is the eleventh year that the Green REsource Council honors members who have made an extraordinary commitment to advancing the green building industry, developing their green skills, and sharing their knowledge in ways that improve their communities.

For the sixth straight year, solar was one of the top two sources of new electricity generating capacity in the U.S., says the U.S. Solar Market Insight, a report by the Solar Energy Industries that looked at the solar market through 2018.

In addition, 83 percent of agents and brokers say that solar panels are located in their market, according to NAR's REALTORS® and Sustainability 2019 Report.

Melisa Camp. Craig Foley. Mary Love. John Rosshirt. John Shipman. James Welch Mitchell. Eileen Oldroyd to name a few.

Though their names are now synonymous with the green real estate industry and they’re leading the charge to advocate for green on the national stage, they once were rising stars. 

They all started their green real estate niche slowly and by steadily building knowledge, developing community and industry relationships, and working to normalize green in their respective markets.