Vote For Your Favorite House in the 2011 Solar Decathlon!

There's currently 19 amazing sun-powered going head-to-head in this year's <a href="http://inhabitat.com/category/solar-decathlon">Solar Decathlon</a> in Washington DC, and we want to know which one is your favorite! Forget that <a href="http://firstlighthouse.ac.nz/">New Zealand</a>'s <a href="http://inhabitat.com/first-light-team-new-zealands-solar-decathlon-house-puts-an-innovative-twist-on-the-basics/">First Light house</a> just <a href="http://inhabitat.com/team-new-zealand%E2%80%99s-first-light-house-wins-the-engineering-contest-at-the-2011-solar-decathlon/">dominated the engineering contest</a>, that the <a href="http://2011.solarteam.org/">University of Maryland</a> <a href="http://inhabitat.com/university-of-marylands-watershed-solar-decathlon-house-launches-into-first-place/">cleaned up in the architecture contest with their Watershed house</a>, or that <a href="http://inhabitat.com/team-purdues-suburban-inhome-rises-to-third-place-in-the-2011-solar-decathlon/">Purdue's INhome</a> and <a href="http://inhabitat.com/empowerhouse-takes-first-place-in-affordability-at-the-2011-solar-decathlon/">Parsons + Stevens' Empowerhouse</a> blew the other houses away with their affordability - we want to hear from you, our discerning readers. So cast your vote for your favorite one of these 7 high-tech solar houses!

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<a href="http://firstlighthouse.ac.nz/">Team New Zealand</a> is showing how things are done south of the equator with their beautiful <a href="http://inhabitat.com/first-light-team-new-zealands-solar-decathlon-house-puts-an-innovative-twist-on-the-basics/">First Light</a> home, which <a href="http://inhabitat.com/team-new-zealand%E2%80%99s-first-light-house-wins-the-engineering-contest-at-the-2011-solar-decathlon/">just won the engineering contest</a> at the 2011 <a href="http://inhabitat.com/solar-decathlon">Solar Decathlon</a>! Locally-sourced materials like sheep's wool insulation are combined with handmade furnishings and smart design to create this breezy "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bach_%28New_Zealand%29">Kiwi Bach</a>" inspired home.

<a href="http://inhabitat.com/solar-decathlon-ohio-state-university-makes-a-cozy-home-out-of-a-tiny-space/">Ohio State's enCORE house</a> is built around a central mechanical core and features a locally manufactured solar array on the roof. Geared towards a family on a budget, the home is an affordable and space conscious design.

The Southern California-based dynamic duo of <a href="http://www.chip2011.com/">Sci_Arc and Caltech</a> have combined their powers to design the out-of-this-world inside-out <a href="http://inhabitat.com/sci-arc-caltechs-solar-decathlon-chip-house-is-a-crazy-inside-out-prefab/">CHIP house</a>, which was inspired by an astronaut's suit. A puffy, white, heavily-insulated exterior encapsulates a compact yet flexible interior complete with enough high-tech gadgetry to keep the house running completely off-grid.

Although <a href="http://inhabitat.com/team-purdues-suburban-inhome-rises-to-third-place-in-the-2011-solar-decathlon/">Purdue's INhome</a> is traditional looking on the outside, its interior hosts an array of cutting edge green building technologies. Super energy-efficient design, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Structural_insulated_panel">SIP construction</a>, and a carefully integrated solar system on the roof are all part of the strategy to make this sustainable design appeal to the mass market.

Leading the pack of do-gooders, the <a href="http://parsit.parsons.edu/">Parsons New School and Stevens Insitute team</a> has bigger plans for their <a href="http://inhabitat.com/empowerhouse-takes-first-place-in-affordability-at-the-2011-solar-decathlon/">Empowerhouse</a> than just the Solar Decathlon. Having tied for first in affordability, the prefab home will eventually get rolled into a <a href="http://www.habitat.org/">Habitat for Humanity</a> project in a nearby neighborhood in Washington DC.

Stunning architecture combined with super conscious water design sets the <a href="http://inhabitat.com/university-of-marylands-watershed-solar-decathlon-house-launches-into-first-place/">University of Maryland's Watershed house</a> apart from the rest. Lush landscaping, an integrated wetlands, and a green roof all help to manage storm water, while water-efficient design inside minimizes H2O use.