Full Interview · January 26, 2026

Why Is Your Heating Bill So High? A Geothermal Reality Check

High heating bills can make geothermal worth investigating—but the house, the site, and the numbers have to make sense first.

Matt Rhine, on the left, interviewing Justin Coleman, on the right, in the official All Roads Lead to Real Estate studio recording

Choose the full interview or a clip below.

Sales, Ground Loop Heating & Air Conditioning

Justin ColemanSales, Ground Loop Heating & Air Conditioning

Inside the Interview

See why a high-bill house still might be a poor fit.
Understand how geothermal moves heat between the house and ground.
Compare vertical drilling with horizontal ground loops.
Ask better questions about insulation, access, and installation.
Treat savings and resale as possibilities—not promises.

Matt Rhine explaining his older home's heating systems in the geothermal interview

Video clip

Justin explains how geothermal moves heat and why the house and existing system matter to the decision.

Savings, cost, timing, maintenance, and system-life statements are attributed to the speakers and are not guarantees. Incentive figures in this interview are a September 2025 historical snapshot, not current guidance.

Meet the Guest

Meet the Guest: Justin Coleman

Justin Coleman works in sales at Ground Loop Heating & Air Conditioning, a third-generation family-owned Maryland business specializing in residential and light-commercial geothermal systems.

More about Meet the Guest: Justin Coleman

He joins Matt to make a complicated home upgrade easier to understand: what goes underground, what changes inside, and when the numbers make sense. Matt brings his own older house into the conversation—and gets an answer that is not an automatic yes.

About Ground Loop Heating & Air Conditioning ↗

SalesGround Loop Heating & Air Conditioning
Residential and light-commercial geothermal HVACThird-generation family-owned Maryland company

Sources: profile 1 ↗profile 2 ↗

Take the conversation with you.

Listen on Apple Podcasts, or follow the show on Spotify.

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Start with the house, then run the numbers.

Matt's own high-bill home was not an automatic yes. Use a property-specific assessment before treating geothermal as a solution.

Know what the bills are telling you

Gather a full year of energy bills, identify the fuels and systems involved, and note seasonal peaks before comparing alternatives.

Check the building first

Ask about insulation, air sealing, ducts, distribution, comfort problems, and how many separate systems the home has.

Test the site

Have a qualified designer assess loop layout, access, underground utilities, yard space, drilling/trenching, permits, and restoration.

Compare complete written proposals

Make sure the scope covers equipment, loop field, duct or electrical changes, permits, commissioning, warranties, service, and backup heat.

Model more than one scenario

Compare like-for-like HVAC options under different energy-price, usage, maintenance, financing, and time-in-home assumptions; do not rely on one payback forecast.

Ask who will support the system

Verify current licenses and relevant certifications, references, service capacity, warranties, and who responds if a loop or heat-pump issue arises.

Keep resale and incentives separate

Do not assume a resale premium. Check current incentive rules, dates, program funds, and eligibility with official administrators and a tax professional.

Incentive figures in the interview reflect September 2025, not current offers. Check today's eligibility and rules before including incentives in a project budget.

Three conversations worth your time.

Choose a highlight to watch it in the full interview player above.

The House Has to Be Right for Geothermal

Justin explains how geothermal moves heat and why the house and existing system matter to the decision.

Justin Coleman describing ground-loop layouts in his interview with Matt Rhine

How Much of the Yard Does a Ground Loop Need?

Vertical drilling, horizontal trenches and what happens to the ground after the work is finished.

Matt Rhine discussing geothermal and resale value in the filmed interview

Will Buyers Pay More for Geothermal?

Matt and Justin compare comfort, operating savings and the harder question of future resale value.

Questions and answers.

Watch each answer at its matched video timestamp, or read the source transcript.

How does geothermal heat and cool a home?

Justin describes moving heat between the house and the ground: drawing heat from the ground in winter and returning heat to it in summer. He says the ground at depth stays around 50–60°F year-round.

Watch video from 00:04:59 →Read transcript →

How much might it reduce an energy bill?

Justin gives a broad 50–80% energy-cost estimate, then stresses that each house differs and insulation and air sealing matter. Treat his range as an interview estimate, not a promised saving.

Watch video from 00:05:28 →Read transcript →

Why might a high-bill older home still be a poor fit?

Matt describes his own home's mismatched, unconnected systems and Justin says the project must be viable for that property. The conversation makes suitability—not a blanket savings claim—the first question.

Watch video from 00:06:01 →Read transcript →