The most amazing point of genius in the Builders Challenge program, in our estimation, was its requirement that the significant energy efficiency improvements in Builders Challenge qualifying homes had to be cost neutral to their owners. Of course such superior homes cost more to build and so they must be priced higher. Cost neutrality required that for each additional dollar in monthly mortgage cost, the home would deliver a dollar savings in electricity costs. What was to be cost neutral going in would quickly become positively cost saving to homeowners when power companies raised their rates.