Portlanders, Here’s What to Expect With The New Home Energy Score

Starting in 2018, owners selling their Portland homes must comply with a City rule requiring a Home Energy Score prior to listing. In the first four months the City requirement has been in place, homeowners and realtors are finding the process simple and straightforward, and the information they get about the home’s energy efficiency insightful.

“Getting a Home Energy Score is always so simple. I schedule online for a time I’m already planning to be there preparing a listing and usually I have a score before I leave,” said JJ Green with the Rastler-Green Team at John L. Scott Real Estate

Homeowners and real estate agents start the process by contacting a Home Energy Assessor who is authorized by the City of Portland to generate the scores. Once scheduled, the assessment typically takes about 90 minutes, depending on the size of the home.

During the assessment, the assessor measures the home’s windows and living spaces and collects data about furnaces, hot water heaters, insulation, etc. Then the assessor uploads the information to a scoring application developed by the U.S. Department of Energy. Most scores can be generated same-day, which minimizes the delay to list the home.

Along with the score, homeowners receive a customized list of recommended improvements to improve the Home Energy Score, all with a payback of 10 years or less. A seller isn’t required to make any of these changes to comply with the City rules. But, having the recommendations is highly beneficial to both sellers and buyers, who receive tips about a home’s overall energy efficiency and how to improve it.

One common recommendation is to improve the home’s insulation – including walls, ceilings and attics. Insulation can make a significant impact on a home’s score, and a lack of proper insulation is often a big reason why a home wastes energy. The reason: insulation keeps warm air inside the home in the winter and cool air inside in the summer. When a home’s insulation is poor, heat moves more freely between the inside and outside, making it harder to heat or cool the home. This leads to wasted energy and higher utility bills.

“Every home is different, and there are many other factors that go into a score,” says Jason Elton, a home energy assessor at Enhabit, a local nonprofit that has been performing home energy assessments for nearly 10 years, and one of the leading Home Energy Score providers in the region. “The size of a home plays a big role too, because the bigger a home is, the more energy the home often uses.”

But, if a homeowner wants to improve their chances of having a higher Home Energy Score, there are simple improvements they can make before they get their score, Elton says. Insulating attics and crawl spaces is typically easy, because these spaces often are more accessible than, say, in between walls. Another improvement with big impact is sealing ducts that travel through unconditioned areas like crawl spaces with mastic sealant putty.

Elton encourages homeowners to be present during the assessment. “Although you don’t have to be at the appointment, it’s a great one-on-one opportunity to talk with an expert about how your home works, and how to make it even more efficient, comfortable and healthy for your family,” he said.

More information about the Home Energy Score requirement and what homes are required to receive a score before selling can be found at the City’s of Portland’s Home Energy Score webpage.

Enhabit, a local nonprofit, has conducted more than 14,000 home energy assessments and 6,000 home performance upgrades since 2010. With Enhabit, homeowners can instantly schedule an appointment with one of its expert Home Energy Assessors, who can both perform the assessment and also help homeowners make sense of their score.

Enhabit is currently scheduling home energy assessments for sellers listing their homes. Learn more at enhabit.org.