Regional Team Q&A with eHaus Christchurch

Recently we launched a new segment that shines a light on our regional teams who bring our high-performance homes to life. Every eHaus is project-managed by a local team who guides each build from the very first client conversations through to handover day, taking care of every part of the design and build process along the way. Across the country, each team brings its own expertise, personality and passion for building better homes. Regional Team Q&A is our way of sharing their stories with you.

Regional Team Q&A with eHaus Christchurch

What does sustainability mean to you?

“Sustainability to us means meeting our needs using as little resources as necessary to ensure there is plenty to go around for us and for future generations. One main way to do this is to live in a high performing house that requires minimal resources to be comfortable. An eHaus has a very low carbon footprint.”

What is your favourite part of the build process, and why?

“The most enjoyable part of the build process is standing the wall framing as this defines the layout of the house and the Client sees fast progress on site.”

What do you enjoy most about being part of the eHaus team?

“Being part of the eHaus team is awesome as we support each other and although individually we are only building a few homes per year, collectively it feels like we are making a difference to our housing stock all over New Zealand. “

What advice would you give someone considering building their first high-performance home?

“For home owners considering building their first high performance home I think it is important to realise the performance of the home is guaranteed by the energy modelling and that the performance is built in for the life of the home. Taking a prospective Client to a completed eHaus is the best way to show the performance of our houses.”

What is one element of an eHaus build that people don't always notice but plays an important role?

“The airtightness layer is never noticed once the gib board goes on but is always there creating a warm comfortable environment within the house.”

Why are high-performance homes particularly important in the Christchurch climate?

“Our climate in Christchurch can vary from over 30 degrees in summer to frosty below zero mornings in winter. In a house built to the standard building code this requires high energy use to either heat or cool the house to make it comfortable. As high performing houses are designed to require a minimal amount of additional heating or cooling, and maintain a comfortable temperature all year round, all this additional energy is not required.”

Do you have a favourite type of home to build, or a particular style of project you enjoy working on?

“We do not mind what sort of homes we build from larger houses on the hill suburbs to smaller homes where people are downsizing for retirement.”

We understand you’re also a musician. Are there any similarities between playing in a band and building a high-performance home?

“The commonality between playing in a band and building a house is the teamwork and cooperation required. Everyone has to play their part to the best of their ability to achieve the best outcome whether that is a great musical performance or the completion of an amazing house.”

What inspired you to become part of the eHaus network?

“We have always been interested in energy efficient building techniques and had built a couple of reasonably high performance houses prior to joining eHaus, but eHaus has an amazing team and wonderful resources and we were incredibly excited to be chosen as the eHaus builder for the Christchurch region.”

Martin and Susan Smith are the team behind eHaus Christchurch. Martin, a qualified PassivHaus Tradesperson, has a quantity surveying background and is responsible for the day to day running of the business. Martin enjoys the challenge of working on architectural housing and renovation work. He also plays in a band in his spare time. Find our more about the team here.

Casebrook Render improved 2026 07 19 234839 hlil

Regional Team Q&A with eHaus Christchurch

Regional Team Q&A with eHaus Christchurch

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