As far as new-home construction goes, the house going up on Golf Trail Ridge in Ford City isn't typical.

The traditional wood framing has been replaced with white Styrofoam bricks, and the usual clatter at a building site is minimized to the noise of a single circular saw and occasional sound of a hammer driving home a nail. The metal roof is on order, and site builders are looking at a variety of insulators, from recycled denim jeans to recycled newspapers.

If construction goes as scheduled, builders Mike Glenn and Shannon Phifer, of E3 Construction, are on track to have the first home in the state certified by the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Green Building Rating System, the gold standard for all "green" construction. It's a big step toward more sustainable as well as more energy-efficient homes in the area as well as Alabama, but it has also meant getting others in the home-building business on board with a different type of construction.

"We don't have any real data on the kind of savings this will mean for the homeowner," Phifer said. "But every day, we're seeing the number of sustainable building products increase, so the technology is there. We just have to use it and get people to understand that the investment up front will have a big payoff in as little as five or seven years."

The almost 3,000-square-foot home will use four types of natural energy: wind, water, solar and geothermal, and Phifer estimates the environmentally friendly options add around $10 per square foot to the overall cost of the home building, for a total of $130 per square foot as opposed to $120 for a more traditional structure.

Homeowner Steve Glenn said the added cost has been worth it.

Looking out at the view of the 16th hole on Fightin' Joe course on the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail from what will soon be a sun porch, he said part of his reason for seeking a more sustainable home is for his grandkids.

"It may cost a little more, but I see this as reducing our carbon footprint," he said. "What I don't understand is why more people aren't doing it, and why it's not easier for people to do this kind of thing on their projects."

A study conducted by Calvert, an investment management firm based in Bethseda, Md., confirms Glenn's suspicions. It found that none of the 13 top builders in the country has fully embraced the emerging market of sustainable building design and construction.

Stu Dalheim, spokesman for Calvert, said waiting to incorporate more green into their building practices will only put them at a competitive disadvantage as consumers demand more climate-friendly construction.

"In the green building market, there is a first-mover advantage," he said. "Companies that make a concerted national effort to integrate sustainability into project sites, construction materials and construction processes, as well as to provide energy, water and habitat conservation options in finished products, will be able to help build a brand image."

Getting LEED certified is not easy and requires three to four visits during construction from a representative from the United States Green Building Council. Every detail of construction is examined, from how clean the construction site is to the use of indigenous plants in landscaping the finished product.

Those barriers were expected by Phifer and Glenn. What they didn't expect to encounter were problems with people on the periphery of home building - appraisers, mortgage lenders and architects.

Witt Beasley, an appraiser who splits his time between Tuscumbia and Palm Beach, Fla., said green homes pose a problem for those in his business because there are no other homes for comparison.

"Once 25 or more homes are built like this, there won't be a problem," he said. "(In the Shoals) where this is a first, it's a good thing, but it's also going to be more costly because it's the first and there are more hoops to jump through."

The Appraisal Institute, the national organization for home and commercial appraisers, has developed a workshop on educating its members on this type of construction, which is scheduled to take place in June, but it's too early to tell how effective it will be as the market for these structures grows.

Mortgage lenders, too, say loans for green homes will be driven by consumer demand for ways to make green construction or green upgrades to existing homes more affordable. Bank of America is the only national mortgage lender that has offered a monetary incentive for those who purchase an existing green home. Locally, however, there are few options for homeowners.

Roxanne Benefield, a mortgage originator with Bank Independent, admits she's "unfamiliar with green homes, but it sounds like something we should be aware of and need to get on board with."

Some states, including North Carolina, Nevada and Hawaii, have passed laws to make it easier for homeowners to install solar panels, which is one of the more expensive alternative energy sources and can take as many as 30 years to see a return on the initial investment.

Alabama has yet to consider similar laws, and, until it does, the chance that more builders will integrate these concepts remains slim, according to Rob Whitten, a local architect. He further suggests that lifestyle changes that benefit the environment may be slower to come as the cost of living in the U.S. continues to rise.

"You can't blame the homeowner if they're forced to jump through hoops to buck the system, which is what lands us back in these ugly, wasteful houses," said Whitten, who has a degree in environmental architecture. "Any kind of real change must be a cooperative effort, from lending institutions accepting greener plans to appraisers being able to appraise the property and not just fit it into the status quo."

Whitten said TVA should take a regional lead on promoting sustainable construction, whether for retail or commercial use.

In fact, the authority has developed green initiatives, including sponsoring the construction of an environmentally friendly subdivision in the 1980s.

"It just didn't take off," said Gil Francis, spokesman for TVA. "And, on a larger scale, it probably won't until the prices of some of these (energy efficient) things comes down. The payback has to be more immediate for homeowners to want to take advantage of them."

Instead, he suggests taking small steps, including keeping the thermostat at 78 degrees in the summer, which translates into a savings of as much as 10 percent on energy costs on monthly utility bills.

If Phifer and Glenn have their way, the home on Golf Trail Ridge will give back to the energy grid it's on, culminating in a rebate for the homeowner.

"After the systems are paid back, it will all be profit," Phifer said. "We want to show people that it doesn't have to be a hassle to go green."

Michelle Rupe Eubanks can be reached at 740-5745 or michelle.eubanks@timesdaily.com.