For future electric car owners, a suburban home might just have the answer for a convenient overnight recharge.

Developer Vic Remmers is incorporating electric-car charging stations into two suburban Portland subdivisions where he’s building homes. His company, West Hills Homes NW, recently broke ground at Pioneer Highlands in Happy Valley, where he plans to build 65 homes. Remmers plans to begin building 118 homes in August at Thompson Woods in the Bonny Slope-Bethany area of Washington County.

All 183 homes will feature electric-car charging stations in their garages. The homes also have WiFi-capable thermostats and garage doors, and WiFi boosters to eliminate dead spots of wireless coverage in homes.

Remmers’ homes show home builders continuing to adjust to and stay in front of buyers’ expectations.

“One thing we’re really focused on here in 2017 is the technology in the homes and pushing forward with what we can do,” Remmers said.

In higher-income portions of the Portland metro area, Teslas seemingly have become as common as Hondas. As Teslas and other electric cars become more common, in-home charging stations begin to become a sensible amenity for developers to consider.

Remmers first tested the reception for in-home car charging stations at homes in Portland. “It’s been really well received,” he said. “It gets your homes ready for the future.”

While many homeowners have installed electric car chargers on their own, Remmers may be the first developer to do so in new homes on a wide scale in Oregon.

“It’s not common at all,” said Terry Bernhardt, an appraiser in Southwest Portland who tracks green home technologies. “Normally you have to have it installed at considerable expense.”

He estimates adding a charging station adds about $4,000 to the cost of building a home.

Paul Grove of the Home Builders Association of Portland said he was not aware of any other housing developments with charging stations installed in each home. But he said he’s noticed more public charging stations, even in rural areas.

Some downtown Portland parking garages include electric charging stations.

“You can definitely see a trend as more and more people choose to drive electric vehicles,” Grove said.

While Tesla vehicles can be plugged in directly to a wall outlet, it can take about eight hours to fully charge when connected to a 110-volt outlet. Dedicated chargers are much faster.

Bernhardt sees more residential developers adopting charging stations as electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids become more common. “The market’s going to catch up,” he said. “I think it’s a technology which has arrived now.”

Homes that include useful technology like electric car chargers both set housing apart and increase its resale value, Bernhardt said.

Electric cars can be charged in the home or at public charging stations. But most vehicle owners prefer the convenience of charging their vehicles at home, typically overnight, said Beau Snyder, an owner advisor at the Tesla dealership on Macadam Avenue, one of two in the Portland area (Tesla also has a dealership at Washington Square).

Tesla operates public charging stations that are free for Tesla owners to use. The Portland area has two so-called Superchargers, one in Woodburn and another in Sandy. There are also charging stations run by various private vendors that use differing technologies.

Some government agencies are working to expand charging stations, too. Seattle City Light, a publicly owned utility, announced plans to install 10 charging stations for drivers.

Oregon’s Building Codes Division also has discussed how to make sure new homes are electric-vehicle ready, said Jon Chandler, chief executive of the Oregon Home Builders Association.

A new era for electric cars appears to be dawning as automakers race to meet emissions mandates. Tesla is the current market leader in electric vehicles, with plans to produce 500,000 fully electric cars in 2018. But other automakers are following close behind. Volvo on July 5 announced plans to offer every vehicle with an electric motor beginning in 2019. Volvo will launch five fully electric models between 2019 and 2021, supplemented by plug-in hybrids and vehicles with so-called “mild hybrid” engines that automatically shut off when a car comes to a stop. Mercedes is also heavily investing in a new line of electric vehicles.

As electric cars become more popular, developers of single–family homes are facing fast-changing demands to respond.

“It’s something that we’re doing across the board right now,” Remmers said. “We think it’s the right thing to do, and we think it’s a feature buyers are going to appreciate in their new homes.”

Remmers uses electrical contractors Three Phase Electric, based in Canby, and Garner Electric, in Portland and Hillsboro.

West Hills Homes NW is developing Pioneer Highlands first, having garnered building permits from the city of Happy Valley. Remmers purchased the unbuilt lots in Pioneer Highlands from Holt Group, another residential developer.

“Over the years we’ve been watching Happy Valley, and it’s been growing tremendously,” Remmers said. “The demographics are excellent.”

Remmers said new Fred Meyer and New Seasons grocery stores have increased interest in the area.

The Pioneer Highlands homes are 2,500 square feet to 4,000 square feet, and are designed by an in-house architect, Brad Hosmar. Some of the homes will be one level, which is in demand for older buyers, Remmers said. Other homes will also have the master bedroom on the ground floor.

The single-family housing market has suffered from a lack of inventory. The Portland metro area had only 1.6 months of inventory in June, according to RMLS, a listing service. Total time on market for sold homes averaged 38 days.

“It’s a lot like the inner city where there really is a lack of inventory,” Remmers said. “It’s definitely a strong demand right now.”

Remmers had focused on the urban infill market before last year, when he began to build in Findley Heights, a subdivision in the Bethany-Bonny Slope area of Washington County.  A 40-lot buildout there is almost complete.

“That was tremendously received,” Remmers said. “We have a handful of homes left there that we’re building. Those have all sold well.”

Remmers is still building apartments and some condos in urban Portland, but has sought suburban developments to diversify and grow his business.

“We’re still doing a tremendous amount of homes in the infill market, just like we’ve been doing,” he said.  “This is another avenue for us to add some volume. That’s what families are looking for.”

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