BrightBuilt home with solar panel roof.

Net-Zero Home Design

Family with bicycles and dog in front of white house during autumn

We know what it takes.

After years of navigating an industry that often felt complicated and opaque, our founders envisioned a simpler path—one where everyday people didn’t need to be sustainability experts, or have deep industry connections to move into a beautifully designed, net-zero home.

So, our team combined expertise in architecture, sustainability, and process management to help mindful home-owners walk a well-lit path towards a better forever home.

Since 2008, it’s a path we’ve been proud to walk.

Building Science

What is Net-Zero Ready?

A Net-Zero Ready home is designed to drastically reduce energy use and eliminate reliance on fossil fuels. With high-performance materials, airtight construction, and efficient systems, these homes are ready to add renewable energy—like solar—to produce as much power as they use. Most remain connected to the local grid, allowing homeowners to feed extra energy back or draw from it when needed. The result? A balanced, resilient, and comfortable home—with no oil or gas bills, and a lighter footprint on the planet.

Blue solar-powered house with large windows near lake and forest at dusk

Find Your Forever Home

Explore high-performance homes designed to meet Net-Zero standards.

White two-story house with solar panels surrounded by trees and green lawn

Appledore

A classic gable-end white farmhouse with a full-length porch draws inspiration from its local roots.

White house with solar panels, surrounded by autumn trees and landscaped garden

Cushing

A blend of modern and traditional, this design features banks of glass, tall ceilings, and an open first-floor living space.

Small cottage with porch, surrounded by trees, with a person playing outside

Drisko

This compact, well-designed single-floor home features a cozy entry deck, single-car garage, and sunny side deck, inspired by Maine’s mill town homes.

Solar-powered blue house in snowy forest with wooden porch

Foxbird

Our featured ranch design offers efficient single-floor living with ample light, comfort, and space. A walkout or daylight basement nearly doubles its size.

Modern black house with solar panels nestled in pine forest landscape

Frenchboro

This adaptable single-floor design offers ample living space, an attached two-car garage, and options for a classic or sleek roof style.

Modern white farmhouse with metal roof glowing at twilight in grassy field

Great Diamond

Reminiscent of Maine’s iconic barns, this design blends comfort with efficiency. Its compact footprint is ideal for tight lots, wooded sites, and rolling fields.

Modern cabin with red roof nestled in lush green forest on raised deck

Highland

Drawing inspiration from the quintessential Maine camp, this design offers rustic charm and is the perfect vacation home or primary residence.

Cozy wooden cabin with blue metal roof in autumn forest at dusk

Jewell

This design nods to Maine’s agrarian roots while embracing modern innovation, offering flexible work, leisure, and living in a compact footprint.

Modern small wooden cabin with large windows in lush green garden

Jordan

Perfect for tight spaces or alongside existing homes, this design offers modern amenities, creative storage, and cutting-edge, energy-efficient construction.

Green wooden house with two-car garage in forested area at sunset

Little Diamond

This design reinvents the classic New England Cape with exposed beams and a double-height window wall, creating grand, light-filled spaces.

Blue solar-powered house with large windows in wooded lakeside setting

Mackworth

One of our largest designs, this spacious home draws from Maine’s vernacular, adapting to any site and accommodating families of all sizes.

Modern black house with solar panels in wooded setting near smaller cabin

Perkins

Blending Scandinavian elegance with high-performance design, this modern farmhouse offers flexible, sun-filled spaces and energy-efficient construction.

White tiny house with deck in wooded area during autumn

Sterling

Designed for quick installation as an ADU, this home offers a compact yet functional layout with customizable rooflines, kitchen, and finishes to suit your style.

Blue tiny house with deck nestled in autumn forest surrounded by trees

Torrey

Designed for homeowners seeking extra space on demand, this ADU features a compact layout with modern elements and energy-efficient construction.

Blue tiny house with deck nestled in autumn forest surrounded by trees

Torrey

Designed for homeowners seeking extra space on demand, this ADU features a compact layout with modern elements and energy-efficient construction.

Modern white farmhouse with metal roof glowing at twilight in grassy field

Great Diamond

Reminiscent of Maine’s iconic barns, this design blends comfort with efficiency. Its compact footprint is ideal for tight lots, wooded sites, and rolling fields.

Green wooden house with two-car garage in forested area at sunset

Little Diamond

This design reinvents the classic New England Cape with exposed beams and a double-height window wall, creating grand, light-filled spaces.

White two-story house with solar panels surrounded by trees and green lawn

Appledore

A classic gable-end white farmhouse with a full-length porch draws inspiration from its local roots.

Blue solar-powered house with large windows in wooded lakeside setting

Mackworth

One of our largest designs, this spacious home draws from Maine’s vernacular, adapting to any site and accommodating families of all sizes.

Small cottage with porch, surrounded by trees, with a person playing outside

Drisko

This compact, well-designed single-floor home features a cozy entry deck, single-car garage, and sunny side deck, inspired by Maine’s mill town homes.

White house with solar panels, surrounded by autumn trees and landscaped garden

Cushing

A blend of modern and traditional, this design features banks of glass, tall ceilings, and an open first-floor living space.

Cozy wooden cabin with blue metal roof in autumn forest at dusk

Jewell

This design nods to Maine’s agrarian roots while embracing modern innovation, offering flexible work, leisure, and living in a compact footprint.

Solar-powered blue house in snowy forest with wooden porch

Foxbird

Our featured ranch design offers efficient single-floor living with ample light, comfort, and space. A walkout or daylight basement nearly doubles its size.

Modern black house with solar panels in wooded setting near smaller cabin

Perkins

Blending Scandinavian elegance with high-performance design, this modern farmhouse offers flexible, sun-filled spaces and energy-efficient construction.

Modern black house with solar panels nestled in pine forest landscape

Frenchboro

This adaptable single-floor design offers ample living space, an attached two-car garage, and options for a classic or sleek roof style.

Modern small wooden cabin with large windows in lush green garden

Jordan

Perfect for tight spaces or alongside existing homes, this design offers modern amenities, creative storage, and cutting-edge, energy-efficient construction.

White tiny house with deck in wooded area during autumn

Sterling

Designed for quick installation as an ADU, this home offers a compact yet functional layout with customizable rooflines, kitchen, and finishes to suit your style.

Modern cabin with red roof nestled in lush green forest on raised deck

Highland

Drawing inspiration from the quintessential Maine camp, this design offers rustic charm and is the perfect vacation home or primary residence.

Your Vision,
Our Expertise

Discover how working together with BrightBuilt helped them design their personalized Net-Zero Ready homes—combining efficiency, comfort, and style.

Modern gray house with green roof and solar panels in autumn forest

About BrightBuilt

Step 1: Pick Your Base Plan (or go fully custom!)


Your project team will then work with you to develop layouts and features that suit your lifestyle, your wants, and your needs. From locating the home on your site to helping you pick out your kitchen cabinets, we guide you through the whole of the design process.

By finalizing the design, programmatic needs of the home, site placement, finish selections, and any added structures, we can also help you get a long way down the road to the final all-in costs for the project. This front-end decision-making lends itself to price predictability, and, accordingly, alleviates the budget-anxiety often felt with custom design/build projects that can meander through a drawn-out decision process, change orders, and unpredicted delays. Our energy-efficient design approach ensures your eco-friendly home will perform optimally from day one.

Step 2: Choose Your Production Method

Depending on the specific variables related to your project, you may choose to engage in either off-site or on-site construction.

We are large proponents of off-site construction practices for the following reasons:

1) Your new home will be built in a climate-controlled environment, not a torrential downpour.

2) Your new home will be carefully measured, precision framed, and systematically  trimmed and detailed.

3) Materials will be purchased and used to maximum efficiency, and their cost will be known at the outset of the project. Building the bulk of the home off-site also means that the construction time on site will be shortened, thus reducing impact on the neighbors and the need for extensive long-term staging on your property.

However, we also know that there are instances in which off-site construction is not a viable option. We believe that each client should have the ability to choose the construction approach that makes the most sense for their project, and we are well-versed in collaborating with general contractors to support on-site construction.

Step 3: Finish Out & Celebrate

The house is whole, the roof is on, the windows are trimmed, and plumbing and electrical is installed… It’s time for the finishing touches.

Kitchen countertops, siding and trim, decks and porches, mechanical systems, finish paint, and brand new floors come together, and in turn, your house becomes your home.

Your general contractor, whom you’ve selected on your own, out of our roster, or with our help, is your local resource — your conduit to the local deals, tradespeople, and insights that will help any project go smoother than if an outsider was dropping in for the duration.Move in and relax. You’re home.

Start Your Net-Zero Journey

Connect with our team to explore how a BrightBuilt home can bring comfort, savings, and sustainability together.

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Modern gray house with green roof and solar panels in autumn forest