[andrewksu]

Fully agree. Our overall mission is replace the average American home with a ZE home, no additional cost and no energy bill to boot.

This first series is the first DVD player. High end, priced at a premium and for early adopters. It'll help us push the edge of our product and fund development of tech/engineering that pushes future price down.

We should be able to launch homes in the $225K range next year that can be built spec and start helping that average family. That is no easy task and nothing else is commonly available anywhere. The early adopters will pave the way for everyone else, just like the Roadster and Model S is doing for the Model 3 and spurring on the rest of the industry to pay attention.

Currently Net-Zero homes start around $250/sqft, with many that push well above that. We aren't really targeting the mid west, where this does tip the scales (we are originally from Kansas City, so appropriate the gap). In major metros in CA, OR, CO, WA, etc, this is actually a good deal for a normal home and a steal for a turn key zero energy home. Our current home in Redwood City, CA is zillowed at $1.6M and would be $220K in KC. It's all relative.

I'll disagree on the resale. The principal of the home is based on passive heating/cooling, good design and great materials, so performs well regardless. Solar will last 30, quality is significantly better than par and even the software can be updated.

Keep posted, we will have a model home available via AirBnB late summer and you can see how truly different (better) these homes are. By the time you are ready to buy, we should also have our next series available.

[rrowland]

How many sales have you had so far? I can see the "DVD player" logic working for DVD player, cars and other possessions that are expected to lose value over time but I don't see this working for real estate and other assets that are commonly seen as investments (Whether they are income-producing or not).

Regardless of which area you're building in, the bottom line seems to be that I'd pay $400k this year for something I could get for $225k next year. Whether I'm in KC and it's worth $220k or Bay Area and it's worth $1.6mil I'm still immediately losing $200k at the time of purchase for no benefit other than having the property a year earlier.

[andrewksu]

Clarification: The current version (Origin series) is the Tesla Model S of homes; high end, luxury, max performance, premium tech, blowing most Mercedes and BMW's out of the water in every way.

Next year we will offer the Tesla Model 3 version in addition to our premium version. Average price, above average performance, cool tech and blows away Acura's, Fords and Chevy's, but lacking the flash and bells and whistles of the higher end.

[andrewksu]

6 sales total with a couple of developments and a influx of individual buyers in the wings.

[maerF0x0]

But unlike the first dvd player, people have been doing ZE homes for a long time.

[andrewksu]

Not so much at scale or at a good price. Less than 1000 in the country built over the last 8-10 years. California will have to switch to building 40,000 per year in the next 4, so major pain point.

Just like there were a few electric cars before Tesla, but none ready for prime time. It's going to take a lot of hard work to change a very outdated market.