Solar Decathlon 2013

Market Appeal Contest

(100 points)

Each U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon 2013 team built its house for a target client of its choosing. The Market Appeal Jury, composed of professionals from the homebuilding industry, evaluated the responsiveness of the house design to the characteristics and requirements of the target client.

The jury considered:

• Livability
  Does the design offer a safe, functional, convenient, comfortable, and enjoyable place to live? Does it feature intuitive house controls? Does it meet the unique needs and desires of the target client?

• Marketability
  Does the house have curb appeal, interior appeal, and quality craftsmanship? How well does its sustainability features and strategies contribute to its marketability? Does the house offer potential homebuyers within the target market a good value?

• Buildability
  Would the construction documents enable a contractor to generate an accurate construction cost estimate and then construct the building as the design team intended it to be built? Could the house's materials and equipment be immediately adopted and built in the private sector?