Centex Energy Advantage homes up to 40% more efficient than typical 10-year-old home

NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C., April 1 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Centex Corporation today announced that construction is under way on nearly 200 energy-efficient homes in neighborhoods across South Carolina's Lowcountry. Collectively, the new Centex homes now in progress are projected to avoid thousands of tons of carbon emissions over time, preventing approximately 340 metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions in just the first year of occupancy.

The industry-leading Centex Energy Advantage is now available in all to-be-built homes in 54 neighborhoods across the Hilton Head, Charleston and Myrtle Beach areas:


    --  The Hilton Head area's first Energy Advantage home, located in
        Shadow Moss near the Shell Point community, is scheduled for delivery in
        April.
    --  Charleston's first Energy Advantage home, located in Rice Field at
        Carolina Bay in west Charleston, is scheduled for delivery in April.


    --  Myrtle Beach's first Energy Advantage home, located in the Barefoot
        community's Brookstone neighborhood near North Myrtle Beach, is
        scheduled for delivery in May.

Please visit any Centex neighborhood sales office along the South Carolina coast for more information. You may also see centex.com/energyadvantage.asp for details and centex.com for details about neighborhoods, homes and prices.(1)

"In today's economy, buyers are just as concerned about the home's operating price as its purchase price," said Will Cutler, Division President for Centex, Coastal Carolinas division. "We can put real-time information about monthly energy costs in their hands. Reducing energy use is good for their budgets -- reducing emissions is good for the Lowcountry."

Centex Energy Advantage homes are up to 22 percent more efficient than comparable new homes built to the most widely used energy efficiency code (the 2006 International Energy Conservation Code), according to a study commissioned with the NAHB Research Center. When compared to a typical 10-year-old home (as defined by the U.S. Department of Energy's Building America Program), the Centex Energy Advantage homes in the study were shown to be up to 40 percent more energy efficient.(2)

According to the NAHB Research Center, each Centex Energy Advantage home avoids emission of an average 1.78 metric tons of carbon dioxide per year compared to a typical new home. That's roughly the same as the greenhouse gas emissions from the family automobile over four months or the CO2 emissions from about 183 gallons of gasoline consumed.(3)

Features of the Centex Energy Advantage standard package in South Carolina include: (4)


    --  Energy monitor: real-time information about electricity usage and
        expense can lead to a 4-15 percent reduction in electricity use; (5)
        Centex is the first national homebuilder to announce the installation of
        an energy monitor in every home it builds
    --  Whirlpool brand ENERGY STAR(R) qualified appliances
    --  Lennox high-efficiency HVAC system(6)
    --  Programmable thermostat(s)
    --  Low-emissivity windows
    --  R-38 insulation and radiant-barrier roof decking in the attic
    --  Compact fluorescent lights in high-traffic areas


    --  Information for maximizing energy efficiency and minimizing the impact
        of home operation on the environment

About Centex

Dallas-based Centex (NYSE: CTX), founded in 1950, is one of the nation's leading home building companies. Its leading brands include Centex Homes, Fox & Jacobs Homes and CityHomes. In addition to its home building operations, Centex also offers mortgage and title services. Centex has ranked among the top three builders on FORTUNE magazine's list of "America's Most Admired Companies" for 10 straight years and is a leader in quality and customer satisfaction.

Editors' notes:


    1. Homes, prices, features and availability are subject to change. Inventory
       homes are subject to prior sale.
    2. This study evaluated energy efficiency gains attributable to the Centex
       Energy Advantage features in a variety of single-family floor plans
       typical of the Company's product line in the climate zones where the
       Company currently operates. Not all floor plans, building materials or
       construction techniques were evaluated in the study. Efficiency gains
       will vary for other plan types, building materials, construction
       techniques and change of climate zone.
    3. Calculations are based on NAHB Research Center estimated efficiency of
       1.78 metric tons of CO2 per home equipped with these standard features,
       as determined by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's
       "Greenhouse Gas Equivalencies Calculator" (see www.epa.gov).
    4. The Centex Energy Advantage will be supplemented or otherwise adjusted as
       required by state and local codes. In several markets, the Company is
       currently building homes with components that exceed the combined
       efficiencies provided by these standard features.
    5. Based upon published studies reviewed by the NAHB Research Center.


    6. 14-SEER air conditioning or 90-percent AFUE furnace, depending upon
       climate zone. SEER is "seasonal energy efficiency ratio," a
       measure of seasonal or annual efficiency of a central air conditioner or
       air-conditioning heat pump that is the average BTUs of cooling delivered
       for every watt-hour of electricity used by the heat pump over a cooling
       season. AFUE is "annual fuel utilization efficiency," a measure
       of average combustion efficiency in a furnace or heating unit.

SOURCE Centex Corporation