The Northwest Green Home Tour is an annual educational event, produced by the Northwest EcoBuilding Guild, that showcases local, sustainable and green new homes, remodels, and energy retrofits in the greater Seattle area.
2024 NWGHT Site Host Overview (downloadable PDF)
Getting more popular every year
Free to the public, the tour has been a successful annual spring event for the past several years, reaching thousands of consumers with radio, and print advertisements, and with an attendance of well over 1,000 guests per Tour. Feedback from members, sponsors, site hosts, and the general public has been overwhelmingly positive. The Tour typically includes about 15 sites, sponsored by members of the Northwest EcoBuilding Guild.
We will be asking for a suggested donation of $10 or more when guests register on Eventbrite. We expect this will increase turnout by those who register.
Purpose The Northwest Green Home Tour provides an opportunity for members of the community to learn about sustainable building practices from the people and businesses that support it, including builders, contractors, suppliers, realtors, and green homeowners. It also serves as a way for building professionals to engage with the general public.
For dozens of site hosts, the annual Northwest Green Home Tour is a chance to educate the public about green building and connect with potential clients. The earlier you register your site, the greater the benefit your company will get from the tour’s extensive publicity and advertising efforts.
How the registration process works
To be considered for the 2024 Northwest Green Home Tour, please complete the online application at www.nwgreenhometour.org. The Northwest Green Home Tour is one of the many benefits for Northwest EcoBuilding Guild members, your membership must be current to apply or we are happy to sign you up. Please visit www.ecobuilding.org/membership.
Payment You may pay the registration fee by credit card or by check. If you choose the latter option, you will be invoiced by the Northwest EcoBuilding Guild.
Selection process Once we receive your information, our selection committee will review your site. Projects of every “shade” of green are encouraged to apply. If we are unable to include your project on the tour, we will notify you and refund any fees you have paid. Once your site has been selected, you are responsible for site host fees. These fees are non-refundable but may be converted to a sponsorship if necessary. If you have any questions about the application process, please don’t hesitate to contact us.
Multiple sites Ask about our multi-site discounts.
Remote sites Ask about our remote sites (outside of the greater Seattle area) discounts.
Site Host + Sponsorship Ask about discounts for combining Sponsorship and Site Host fees.
Click here to see our 2024 Sponsorship Opportunities.
Your site host fees at work Nearly all revenues generated go toward the operating expenses of the tour and toward publicizing this free, educational event via a range of media. Any additional proceeds help support the nonprofit producer of the tour: the Northwest EcoBuilding Guild. The mission of the Guild is to promote green building excellence in the region and improve the relationship between our communities and our built environment. Our green building advocacy helps grow your business.
Before the tour Once your site has been selected, you will need to provide any information and files that may have been missing from your application, such as photographs and descriptions of your site. All site hosts and owners of homes on the tour must sign a liability waiver, either electronically or on paper. An online orientation will be scheduled. You will learn the ins and outs of successfully hosting a site on the tour at this mandatory event. We will contact you with the details.
On the day of the tour The tour will take place on Saturday, April 27, 2024 from 11am–5pm. Please note that if we get a large number of sites for the event, we might split them into two days to allow Tour goers most opportunity to see the sites that interset them. In that case, the day your site will be on the tour will be decided in early March.
As a site host, it will be your responsibility to ensure that visitors are wearing an official wristband which indicates that they have signed a liability waiver for the tour. You must also post the official tour signage, which points out sustainability features of your site, and strategically place outdoor signs, which we provide, to direct visitors to your project. The tour is self-guided, but you must have at least one representative knowledgeable about your project on site to answer questions.
The Northwest Green Home Tour Committee works to solicit “Greeter” volunteers for two shifts for the day at each site, but we ask that site hosts have a backup plan in place for this must-have volunteer role in case volunteers are not provided. We ask that the “Greeter” not be the same person with hosting duties (unless both roles are being shared amongst two people).
If you are a homeowner or a building professional working with a client, you may have questions about what to expect as a site participant on the tour.
Q: Who is responsible for the application
and fees?
A: Anyone can be the designated site host: a homeowner, an architect or designer, or the builder or sub-contractor. The Northwest Green Home Tour is one of the many benefits for Northwest EcoBuilding Guild members, your membership must be current to apply or we are happy to sign you up. Please visit www.ecobuilding.org/membership.
Q: Is my home close enough to your area to be on the tour?
A: Yes! On the Seattle area tour we’ve had sites as far out of town as Lopez Island and Carnation that have done nicely with 50-60 visitors. Ask about our remote sites discounts!
Q: How many visitors can I expect?
A: Sites average about 75 guests throughout the day, with some sites welcoming more than 500 visitors. Traffic varies depending on the location of the site, the number of adjacent sites in the area, the features in the project, and other factors.
Q: How “green” does the project have to be to be considered for the tour?
A: Our goal is to educate consumers about all “shades” of green building: from light green (energy retrofits or a modest remodel using sustainable materials and good design) to deep green (a project that includes many elements of sustainability) and all shades in between. We want guests attending the tour to see what’s possible in all price ranges, home styles, and lifestyles.
Q: Can a homeowner be guaranteed privacy?
A: Homeowners can establish off-limits areas. Among the site signage templates we provide are signs restricting room access.
Q: I have homeowner’s insurance, but what about liability protection?
A: All visitors must sign a liability waiver to protect homeowners, site hosts, organizers, and others from liability.
Q: Do homeowners need to be on site during the tour?
A: Homeowners need not be present, but many enjoy speaking with visitors and answering questions.