Article Living House, A Climate Positive Housing Solution

An exterior view of Living House by RTA Studio. Render: RTA Studio

FISHER & PAYKEL HOME SOLUTIONS

Living House: A Climate Positive Housing Solution

Editorial Desk | 07.08.2025 | 5 min read

Fisher & Paykel Home Solutions has partnered with RTA Studio and The Lever Room to deliver Living House , a climate-positive, affordable housing model that offers a scalable, high-performance solution to New Zealand’s housing crisis.

At 85 m², the three-bedroom modular home is constructed from locally sourced, FSC-certified cross-laminated timber (CLT) and delivered flat-packed. Requiring just three people to assemble, it radically reduces labour time and cost – estimated at approximately $30,000.

Beyond its affordability, Living House is also climate positive: as developed by The Lever Room .* Their whole-of-lifecycle building model demonstrated that the biogenic carbon stored in the Living House’s materials and emissions outweighs its total lifecycle emissions. Achieving a climate positive home has additionally been supported by an optimised thermal envelope, solar integration, and energy-efficient appliances.

As a key partner on the project, we worked with the architects on the thermal design, and HVAC, solar, hot water design and specification.

A solar PV system reduces electricity demand by 40%.

The open-plan kitchen includes a timber kitchenette that features energy-efficient Haier appliances.

The interior features floor-to-ceiling CLT wall panels. Render: RTA Studio .

In the living room, high-performance glazing in sliding doors and clerestory windows insulates while providing natural light and ventilation. Render: RTA Studio

Fisher & Paykel Home Solutions provided a whole-of-home energy solution with Haier Monoblock Heat Pump Water Heater, HVAC and solar solutions.

Whole-of-System Design Support

The Living House was conceived as a way to combat New Zealand’s housing crisis. By building at volume country-wide, the location, climate and orientation will be significant factors in the siting and thermal optimisation of the house.

By thermally modelling the Living House design from the concept phase, our team were able to identify the thermal impacts of changing the building’s orientation, window size and position, or adding shading elements.

This visibility of thermal modelling data allowed the architects to see the impact of their design choices, giving them real confidence in understanding trade-offs and changes, and enabling them to make the best decisions for the project.

Even at the prototype stage in Rotorua, our modelling considered broader deployment anticipating performance in different climate zones and informing future siting across the country.

Whole-of-Home Energy Design

Once the thermal performance targets were defined, our team designed an integrated system combining solar PV, heat-pump hot water, and climate control.

The solar PV system was sized relative to heating loads and appliance use, delivering a 40% reduction in electricity demand compared with a standard New Zealand home. With a larger solar array and battery, modelling showed a potential 75–80% reduction.**

Living House exemplifies whole-of-home energy design – where refined architecture is supported by high-efficiency systems, reducing operational costs without sacrificing performance.

Providing an end-to-end solution, we specified solar, hot water, climate control, and appliance solutions – simplifying the process for architects and builders. Haier products, Fronius inverters and DAS solar panels have been used, showcasing how the design remains brand-flexible, allowing integration of best-fit technologies.

A Living Model for Green Energy

With all projects, there is a balance of comfort, carbon, cost, and aesthetics. Our role is not to tell the architect what they must do but provide insight and options so they can make the best choices for their project’s goals.

For example, in this project, the glazing of the whare-like form was a key architectural move, and RTA Studio was able to understand the impact of the glazing and address it holistically.

The Fisher & Paykel Home Solutions team will monitor the energy use of the prototype, aligning real world data with the models, and taking learnings for future projects. We look forward to working with RTA Studio as this project continues to grow.

*Technical report from The Lever Room available on request.
**Fisher & Paykel Home Solutions report, 2024.