Home Performance Washington News » Reference

Kitchen Table Strategy: Home Inspectors Driving Demand for Home Energy Upgrades

Shannon Ellis-Brock — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 21:10:06 +0000

“Kitchen Table” Strategy

Nearly 10,000 times every day, home inspectors sit at kitchen tables with new homeowners — BEFORE they even buy the house — and educate them about:

how the home works;
how to maintain it;
and how to save energy.

Home inspectors are right now talking to potential clients of home energy professionals. This strategy connects them. Energy education ultimately can create demand.

Energy Efficiency ratings for that new TV or other appliance.

Shannon Ellis-Brock — Sun, 18 Dec 2011 16:55:56 +0000

If you, or someone you know are in the market for a new TV check out The Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance’s (NEEA) website for which TVs use the least energy and where to find them in your state: http://energyefficientelectronics.org/

As you may know, televisions are the fastest-growing consumer of residential power in the Northwest – there are more of them, they are on more hours, they have more devices attached to them – and those screens just keep getting bigger!

And if it’s not a TV you are in the market for – the site also lists the top ten most energy efficient refrigerators, dish washers and several other appliances and electronics.

Green Drinks – Give like you give a damn event Tuesday December 13, 2011

Shannon Ellis-Brock — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 17:25:01 +0000

THE DECEMBER 2011 GREENDRINKS WILL BE ON TUESDAY, 13 DECEMBER, AND WILL BE A HOLIDAY FAIR. The December Greendrinks will take place at Stadium Nissan, at 1045 6th Ave S – just south of the International District (1 block from light rail), beginning at 5:30pm. Huge thanks to presenting sponsor BECU, a locally-owned community credit union, and to Urban Visions, for providing the venue.

We have over 25 vendors participating in the holiday fair, offering a variety of different ways of thinking about giving. Frogbox will be collecting shoes for Redeeming Soles as well as collecting toys for the Claire Beckett Guild. The event will also feature vendors, music from Seattle’s greenest bluegrass band, food and drink, and fun with other Greendrinkers. We’ll also have Dante’s Inferno Dogs rejoining Greendrinks after a much-too-long hiatus, and Seattle Goodwill will be giving out free Chinook Books (50 paper, 50 mobile) to the first 100 people through the door. And, we’ll once again have Greendrinks pint glasses for sale!

Green Lunches

Intimidated by big groups? Next Friday, 16 December, join up to five other Greendrinkers for a Green Lunch, in which small groups of people are randomly matched and thus able to grab lunch together. You select the time & venue, but meet other Greendrinkers with which to enjoy your meal! Click here to sign up by next Wednesday, 14 December.

Sponsors
Thanks, as always, to our ongoing sponsors: Sierra Nevada Brewing Co, Badger Mountain Winery, The Essential Baking Co, Tonnemaker Family Orchard and Chaco Canyon Cafe. If your company is interested in joining this list, please email info (at) seattlegreendrinks.org; we’d love to have you!

HPW Meeting Notes November 8th 2011

Charlie Rogers — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 01:44:49 +0000

Yvonne Krause – RePower

Bainbridge conversion rate is 8.3% rates for projects that achieve 10% or more (11% if projects achieving less than 10% are included)

Bremerton is delivering HomePrint program through partnership with PSE. Has finished 65 of them so far. 3 upgrades so far in the first month (10% conversion rate).

Kitsap county has 160 assessments thus far. Conversion rates for that program is 26%.

Program has created 21 jobs so far (11 from CSG and 10 from contractors).

Marketing on Bainbridge features residents in campaign. Posters show people who did upgrades and their energy savings. One motivation for islanders is to conserve enough energy to avoid need for second substation. They created a detailed incentive booklet to give customers a decision guide. Every customer in the program gets one. As soon as they stopped their poster campaign, they saw their call volume drop. Now that they restarted it, calls are going up again. Yard signs are huge—keeping up with the Jones’s.

Lead energy advisor answers a lot of technical questions to help homeowners make sense of differences between auditor and contractor recommendations.

Rashad Morris – Washington Environmental Council

Working on state level to get laws passed to help residential energy efficiency industry. He was considering a bill to make energy audits required at time of sale. He now wants to take a more holistic view. This includes 4 main goals:

Develop long-term strategic plan for the State of Washington’s energy efficiency
How do we make what we currently have work better? (For example, suggesting that the legislature look at the prevailing wage classification issue and fix it)
Educating real estate professionals to appreciate and identify energy efficiency measures in buildings.
Have a pilot program that will allow for point of sale disclosure of energy usage

Mario Pedroza – Puget Sound Clean Air Agency

There are 7 clean air agencies in the state. They enforce the burn bans. They permit and regulate sources of air pollution in their area. They respond to complaints. Their asbestos program regulates all material removal. The fees pay for their program. They enforce the federal requirements, state regulation and their own regulations.

Asbestos is a naturally occurring group of minerals. The same things that make it such a good building material are what makes it dangerous for humans. It is chemically inert. Hardly anything can react with it and it can break down into very small fibers (1 micron in length). We can breathe it into our lungs and it does not go away. It is ubiquitous in building materials; asbestos is found in insulation, fire proofing, acoustic material, cement products, flooring, roofing, suspended ceiling tiles, gaskets, etc.

The problem comes when it deteriorates or you try and remove it. Don’t panic if you find it. If it is in good condition it probably will not be a problem. There is no minimum dosage level where it is OK. It is legal today in the U.S. to use asbestos; you can just not make them. Some of the asbestos duct wrap can be up to 90% pure asbestos. China’s asbestos standard is <10% is labeled as asbestos free; in the U.S. the standard is 1%.

Homeowners can do their own asbestos abatement. It is not generally recommended, but the cost for removal by a contractor can be prohibitive.

Most important aspect of asbestos removal is to wet the material with soapy water to prevent the fibers from getting into the air.

Oftentimes putty around older windows can contain asbestos. The rope around the fireplace insert can be made of asbestos.

Before demolitions or renovations you are required for a AHERA-certified inspection. It can cost $400+ dollars for the inspection. Homeowners doing their own abatement are not required to do this.

There is no known safe exposure to asbestos. There is a latency period and the problem tends to manifest itself in 10 to 40 years. Smoking increases problems by about 50 times. Lung cancer, scarring of lungs, mesothelioma, cancer of the pleura, etc. are all effets.

Once asbestos is in your body it stays there.

Asbestos duct wrap that is not friable is probably safe to run the blower door. It is not safe with vermiculite.

Announcements

Next meeting is January 10^th from 6 to 8pm (tentative date/time)

Michael Stuart’s Infrared class November 17^th – call Gretchen to register 930-5355

No HPW holiday party this year; we will be directing people to the EcoBuilding Guild event if there is one.

NW Ecobuilding Guild is going through with the Green Home Tour in April on Earth Day

In April there will be software training for moisture migration through walls

PSE changed incentives; allowance in the floor insulation R11 to R30 for $200.

Bipartisan Bill Introduced in the U.S. Senate to Account for Energy Costs in Mortgage Underwriting

David Bangs — Thu, 27 Oct 2011 18:46:52 +0000

From: RESNET - Full Story http://campaign.r20.constantcontact.com/render?llr=4xoe5idab&v=0015qcJ7P_42YjLe6ZacJ-Yqkza6F31cKHOPr-Y2uVRBhSolxa1VC19z8n7q1qcjJSKw8MmMYRmS-ngL7FuztNJckJh07W3pqe3lcjwnC1Af4E%3D

U.S. Senators Michael Bennet (D-Colo.) and Johnny Isakson (R-Ga.) introduced a bipartisan bill that would enable better mortgage underwriting, reflect the value of energy performance in the appraisal, encourage investments in energy efficient homebuilding and create more than 80,000 construction jobs.

Under the Sensible Accounting to Value Energy (SAVE) Act, federal mortgage loan agencies would consider a homeowner’s expected energy costs when determining the homeowner’s ability to make monthly mortgage payments.

There are two main elements of the proposed legislation. The first is the recognition of the energy as an housing cost. This would change the current PITI (Principal, Interest, Taxes and Insurance) into PIETI (Principal, Interest, Taxes, Insurance plus Energy). This means that with every dollar the home saves in energy it would increase the buyer’s ability to afford the efficient home by the same amount. This has been a structural reform advocated by RESNET since 2006 (see RESNET Policy on Energy Efficient Mortgages)

The second main element of the SAVE Act is the Loan to Value Adjustment, which incorporates the Net Present Value (NPV) of expected energy savings into the home’s appraisal.

Both elements will allow homeowners to invest in improved energy performance and finance it through the traditional mortgage.

The proposed legislation would recognize RESNET home energy ratings for calculating the energy savings for the mortgage loan.

According to the legislation’s sponsors, the average homeowner spends more than $2,000 each year on energy costs – more than on either real estate taxes or homeowners insurance, both of which are regularly accounted for in mortgage underwriting. On average, these energy costs amount to more than $60,000 over the life of a 30-year mortgage. The SAVE Act would address this blind spot, giving a more complete picture of the costs of homeownership and borrowers’ capacity to service debt.

Under the SAVE Act, lenders would account for expected energy costs along with other recurring payments in the debt-to-income qualifying ratios, which test the borrower’s ability to afford regular monthly mortgage payments. According to a new study from The American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy, the SAVE act is predicted to create 83,000 new jobs in construction, renovation and manufacturing by 2020.

“It is rare to have such diverse interests come together, and that’s because this is a common-sense bill,” said Bennet. “The Save Act would help provide access to useful information about energy usage that home owners, buyers, appraisers and underwriters want and need. It would lead to more complete and accurate mortgage underwriting, would encourage investments in home energy improvements, create more than 80,000 jobs and lighten the load for Colorado families’ budgets.”

“As someone who has 30 years of experience in the resident real estate industry and who has lived through multiple recessions, I understand that recovery in the housing market and job creation in the construction sector is pivotal to getting our economy back on track,” said Isakson. “I place my support behind this bill because it has the potential to create jobs without any cost to taxpayers, and it will also improve mortgage underwriting in this country by including energy as a factor in the process.”

The bill has support from a broad coalition of real estate, business, building trade and conservation groups, including RESNET, Leading Builders of America, Appraisal Institute, U.S. Green Building Council, National Association of Manufacturers, International Code Council, U.S. Chamber of Commerce, ASHRAE, Efficiency First, Alliance to Save Energy, American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy, American Gas Association, American Public Gas Association, Natural Resources Defense Council, and National Association of State Energy Officials.

“The SAVE Act creates private sector jobs while making our homes more energy efficient,” said Ross Eisenberg, Environment and Energy Counsel at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. “And by accomplishing these goals without the need for major federal spending, the SAVE Act will spur job growth in the private sector without adding to the federal deficit. That is a ‘win-win’ for the business community, and is the kind of realistic, commonsense policy everyone should want to get behind.”

“This bill is a win for homeowners, the economy, and a cleaner environment. The legislation would empower homeowners and lenders with better information about energy bills so they can make more informed decisions. This proposal would enable increased investment in the energy efficiency of homes, leading to lower energy bills. At the same time, it also would help create jobs and reduce toxic pollution from wasted energy,” said Philip Henderson, senior financial policy specialist, Natural Resources Defense Council.

“We strongly support this legislation because it will improve mortgage underwriting performed by federal mortgage agencies by ensuring that energy costs are included in the process,” said Appraisal Institute President Joseph C. Magdziarz, MAI, SRA. “It would require use of qualified, competent appraisers and would help ensure that appraisers have access to data needed to analyze the effects of energy-efficient home improvements in the marketplace. Consumers would benefit from the bill’s efforts to help ensure they receive a reliable, credible opinion of value.”

“With this act in place, we believe it is possible to substantially increase the energy efficiency of new homes over the next decade while retaining affordability for our customers. This truly is a win-win opportunity for our customers, the economy and our environment,” said Ken Gear, executive director of Leading Builders of America, Inc.

The SAVE Act is one of RESNET congressional priorities. The RESNET network is urged to contact their Senators, educate them on the need for such legislation and urge them to co-sponsor the legislation.

Appraisers get guidelines for setting the value of energy-saving home improvements

David Bangs — Sun, 16 Oct 2011 23:56:39 +0000

http://www.washingtonpost.com/realestate/appraisers-get-guidelines-for-setting-the-value-of-energy-saving-home-improvements/2011/10/05/gIQAiZRkSL_story.html

By Kenneth R. Harney, Published: October 7

Here’s some good news for homeowners who have gone green and installed energy-saving features but haven’t been sure whether appraisers will credit them with higher valuations: Thanks to a new industry-issued appraisal addendum, the odds have improved that they’ll get the market value they’re due.

The Appraisal Institute, the country’s largest and most influential association in its field, published the long-awaited addendum Sept. 29. It’s designed to be attached to any standard appraisal report covering a property with significant green features. Owners, sellers, buyers, refinancers and real estate agents don’t have to wait for an appraiser to use it. They can download it at no cost and ask that it be made part of the appraisal submitted to the lenders.

Click link for full article

http://www.washingtonpost.com/realestate/appraisers-get-guidelines-for-setting-the-value-of-energy-saving-home-improvements/2011/10/05/gIQAiZRkSL_story.html

11 OCtober 2011 – HPW General Membership Meeting Notes

Charlie Rogers — Wed, 12 Oct 2011 00:06:06 +0000

Policy Update:

Department of Commerce recently came out with the draft 2012 State Energy Strategy for public comment. Click on this link to learn how to review the document, submit feedback and also details about attending a public meeting in Tacoma on Wednesday, October 12th:
http://www.commerce.wa.gov/site/1327/default.aspx
Tara Anderson, Kellie Stickney and Steve Gelb – Sustainable Works

SustainableWorks is a community-based non-profit created solely to help homeowners with retrofits to reduce energy use while also creating quality jobs. Tara Anderson, director of operations, will give us an overview and discuss opportunities for collaboration. Kellie Stickney, outreach manager, will discuss how Sustainable Works engages communities and their plans to support the home performance industry over time.
Sustainable Works uses a full service model. They use a multi-touch community-led marketing model. The talk to community groups; at their work; etc. They engage homeowners to talk to their neighbors. They do use some traditional marketing. They try and touch people 5 times. Have had 2,000 people sign up for energy audits statewide; 1,000 of those completed thus far. Conversion rates are about 33%. The environment and saving money/energy are the main motivators for their customers.

They do project bundling. After recommendations are made by their auditor, they put the contracts together and put them out to bid as part of a pool. Allows SW to pass on the economies of scale to the homeowner. Also gives the contractor more consistency of work. PSCCU is SW’s lending partner. SW supports standardization of the industry.

SW has 3 job openings right now! SW will be offering a 2-day IR training course, dates TBD. If you are a trainer or BPI proctor, SW welcomes you to contact them so they can collaborate. If you’re interested in being one of their contractors, you can contact them about applying to be part of their preferred vendor pool.

Peggy Mazzuca (Mold Solutions NW) – Martin Rose (Rose Environmental) – Mold

Some lively discussion has occurred amongst our members regarding the causes and solutions of mold in attics and crawl spaces. Though we collectively we a lot, there is some disagreement and confusion, especially regarding ways to communicate with homeowners about suspicious growths.

Peggy Mazzuca has been certified through the National Association of Mold Professionals as a mold remediator and inspector. Mold Solutions NW (www.dontfearmold.com) specializes in mold; finding it, getting rid of it and preventing its return. Martin Rose, BS, MS, CIH, is a board certified industrial hygienist. His company, Rose Environmental (www.roseenvironmental.com), specializes in indoor environmental quality, comprehensive industrial hygiene, site safety and health, asbestos and lead, mold, noise and non-ionizing radiation, and safety audits.

An industrial hygienist evaluates environmental hazards. Martin is a board certified industrial hygienist (American Board of Industrial Hygiene). There are 3 types of health inplications from mold – allergy, toxicosis and infection. Allergic reaction is the main concern. Toxicosis can be the result of mycotoxins that are given off by molds as a way to fight amongst themselves. Stachybotrys is the “black mold” that generated a lot of media attention. Using words like “toxic” is alarmist. It is not a good way to refer to mold. Infection: certain molds are pathogenic usually for people who are severely immuno-compromised. Risk to everday healthy individuals is low.

Definitive resource is “Damp Indoor Spaces and Health, 2004″

An industrial hygienist can do a mold inspection or testing to determine if there is a problem. They look for visible mold, water stained or damaged building materials, and musty odors. Two types of sampling: air sampling or source sampling. You may not need to sample. Something should be done anyway if there is mold. Moldy indoor environments are not acceptable. He discourages testing in most cases. Testing is expensive.

If you have a moldy building, you need to get rid of the mold. If you have a solid material (like glass) you can clean it off. If it is porous, it usually needs to be disposed of. Semi-porous material (like wood) can be more difficult to handle. Biocides are usually a short-cut that he does not normally recommend. HEPA vac or damp wiping is a common way to remove mold spores.

Mold needs three things: moisture, food and right temperature. Only one we can control is moisture levels.

In the state of WA there is no certifications for mold inspectors. You are opening yourself up to a lot of liability if you collect the sample yourself.

David Bangs – Aaron Adelstein – Kevin Ward – 20/20 Home Refit Challenge.

The 20/20 Home Refit Challenge is a joint project of Home Performance Washington, Built Green of King and Snohomish Counties and the Northwest EcoBuilding Guild to encourage energy retrofits in conjunction with remodel projects. Since time and money are the largest obstacles to home energy improvements, let’s not miss the opportunity to vastly increase the number of remodel projects that include energy efficiency improvements.

The first phase is technical: Let’s discuss the proposed process to qualify that a project will save at least 20% on energy and will pass the brand new Built Green Home Refit Checklist. This is a nice future opportunity for BPI or RESNET certified building analysts and contractors!

Each project must save 20% of the home’s energy as modeled by approved software. PSCCU is offering a special loan package for homeowners that participate in this program. Benefit to re-modelers include: more value to each customer, larger project, improve reputations. Benefits to energy professionals include: ratings of more homes, participate with remodel projects, include additional sustainability measures, grow business, track savings, gain recognition. Energy programs will get to reach homeowners who are already upgrading, help meet program goals and participate in a market driven program that outlasts stimulus.

Each program begins with an audit and ends in a test out. Approved software includes EPS, HERS, REMRate, TREAT or Recurve. Consistent software and assumptions in and out. EPS: use maximum post-retrofit energy figure. Auditors must be BPI or RESNET certified; can fill out Built Green Home Refit Checklist. Turn in audit form and checklist to Built Green on project completion

Not ready for big push on this yet. They want to start a pilot phase first.

First time green building groups in area are working collaboratively.

BuiltGreen is taking away 2-star checklist and will be considering a new level called Home Refit Checklist for this specific effort. It will be easier to understand and less complex. Re-fit checklist is work in progress; Aaron will be presenting it to BuiltGreen board soon. He is thinking for non-energy categories (i.e. water) there will be 5 requirements out of 10 options.

Program will not be requiring third-party verification or energy auditor test outs.

Jobs completed after 6/1/11 of this year will be eligible for this program.

Infrared Training: Nov. 17th, 8:30 to 4:30 at EcoHaus in Seattle, Trainer: Michael Stuart $129 at the door, early registration $89, HPW members: $69

Next Meeting: November 8^thGeneral Meeting

At our last General Meeting of the year, we will learn about the Repower Bainbridge Project, proposals for the 2012 state legislative session and asbestos certification requirements.

Job: Conservation Services Group, Energy Advisor, Bainbridge Island

David Bangs — Wed, 28 Sep 2011 17:46:31 +0000

Conservation Services Group is hiring for an Energy Advisor position on Bainbridge Island.

Details here: https://jobs-csg.icims.com/jobs/1955/job

The SAVE Act Gathers Broad-based Support

David Bangs — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 03:26:58 +0000

From Efficiency First:

In today’s heated Washington, DC environment, it’s not often that groups
like the Center for American Progress and the Chamber of Commerce are on the
same page. But that’s what is happening with the “SAVE” Act (Sensible Accounting to Value
Energy), which could be a key long-term driver of growth in energy efficiency
retrofits.

Check
it out:

The “Sensible Accounting to Value Energy Act,” or SAVE Act, which is
expected to be introduced this fall by Sen. Michael Bennet (D-Colo.), would
require federal loan agencies to include projected energy costs when financing
a house, essentially offering better mortgage values on properties that are
more energy efficient.

The U.S. Chamber says the relatively simple bill stands a chance in a
tight-fisted and bitterly divided Congress.

“The chamber supports energy efficiency. More importantly, we realized that with the new Congress and political dynamic, it was important to figure out policies and bills that we thought were not only good, but realistic given the fiscal constraint,” said Ross Eisenberg, environment and energy counsel at the U.S. Chamber.

This bill, he said, “promotes efficiency and transparency while not costing
the taxpayers anything.”

Currently, property appraisers consider identically sized residences the
same, regardless of whether one might offer significant savings on energy
bills, said Bob Sahadi, director of energy efficiency finance policy for the
nonprofit Institute for Market Transformation (IMT).

“Right now, [appraisers] don’t know how to evaluate the energy efficiency of
a home because it’s not something they can feel and touch,” said Sahadi, whose
group is spearheading the bill. “We have come up with something that’s really
an old concept, which is adding the net present value of energy savings to the
appraisal. If a home has energy savings of $200 a month, that’s income that’s
available and … added to the appraised value.”

Efficiency First supports the SAVE Act, and we’ll be keeping members up to
speed as the bill gains more traction.

http://www.efficiencyfirst.org/blog/2011/08/26/the-save-act-gathers-broad-based-support/

Sept. 13th General Meeting Notes

Charlie Rogers — Wed, 14 Sep 2011 00:30:00 +0000

HPW General Meeting Notes
13 September 2011

The Value of an Efficient Home

Presentations:

Lance Kling – Co-Chair of Efficiency First Real Estate Working Group

Will lead off with a review of the Efficiency First (EF) efforts to date to include Home Labeling Programs, NAR Green’s greentheMLS.org, and the Institute for Market Transformation.

EF has been trying to “green” the MLS. Green MLS is a free market approach and can make premium transparent. 2010 survey showed 88% of homebuyer’s said heating and cooling costs were somewhat or very important when considering a home. Green MLS would have a third-party documentation.
Appraisal industry supports including home performance features as part of the appraisal process.
SAVE Act is a project in DC that would take home energy costs into account as part of mortgages.
Challenge to creating a national GreenMLS is that there is no central standardization. Each MLS is unique.
2009: 5% out of 850 MLS participating with Green MLS
2010: 20% out of 850 MLS participating with Green MLS

Only Seattle and Portland MLS are tracking sales of Green MLS performance. San Francisco/Bay area will start sometime soon.

Starting to see evidence that green homes sell faster.

Ben Kaufman – Co-Owner & Managing Broker, GreenWorks Realty

will discuss how he was able to revise the Northwest Multiple Listing Service (NMLS) to include green data fields. How we did it, what we did, and what the results have been, including showing the latest MLS stats for the area will be presented in a slide show format.

First Green realty in the country (10 years ago). Portland had approved Green MLS first and that was the impetus in Seattle to do the same. Seattle wanted to have a checkbox for environmental certifications (LEED, Energy Star, Built Green, 3rd party verified, and other). They made it handy to attach the green checklist to the listing. 4-5 other checkboxes for bamboo, drought resistant landscaping, solar, etc.
Seattle has done an excellent job of tracking statistics of green home sales. In King County from Nov. 2009 to Dec of 2010, 33% of new homes sold with an environmental certificate with a $70k price premium. All things being equal, it is about a 8 to 10% premium between a green and non-green home.
In Seattle, from June ’09 to July ’11 third party certified deep green homes are selling for $90,000 more and in less time on the market.

Green premium has declined in last 4 to 5 months, but that can be partially explained because some of the green builders are choosing to build to green but not certify the home to cut costs.
Next step is to include check boxes for HERS and EPS scores. It will probably take a few years for that to happen.

Green certification is a badge of honor of sorts. It tells potential homebuyers that the seller has taken care of the home and that everything else about that home may be in good shape as well. It gets buyers in the door.

Canuche Terranella– Green Canopy Homes

will present case studies on some of his recent projects to include success stories and obstacles faced.
Green Canopy buys existing homes and remodels and retrofits them for resale. Sold one house in Ballard in 6 hours. They put a rain screen on the outside of the house. Installed a ductless heat pump. Some people took issue with the location of the heat pump. 4-star built green.

Another split-level house that sold in 4 weeks and sold for $30k less than the listing price. They did install a ductless heat pump and cold roof. 3-star built green
They put out “silent talkers” throughout the house to educate potential homebuyers about all the improvement in the homes.

Jeff Carter – Building Scientist, Fluid Market Strategies, and experienced home appraiser.
will present insights into the challenges of accounting for the value of energy efficiency in a home appraisal.

Jeff has been appraising homes for 14 years and started getting into green home appraisal work about 2 years ago. Appraisers do not spend much time in the house. They are looking for what has been updated or remodeled in the home. Appraisals directly impact the value of homes; if appraisals do not see the value of energy upgrades then that value is lost. Barriers include lack of data for appraisers to base the value difference. Appraisers are restricted to comparisons and it is difficult to find similar homes within a mile of the house they are appraising. Many appraisers lack the knowledge about the value of green homes. Current residential appraisal standards (set by Fannie and Freddie) make it tough to adjust value for energy efficiency improvements. There is also confusion over the HVCC—restricts who can talk to appraisers about home value. There is a lack of credible cost and savings data.

Green training for appraisers is available and more and more appraisers are getting educated. Appraisers struck down legislation that would have required a green certified appraiser when appraising green certified homes. Greening the MLS helps appraisers account for the value.

In order to get the right appraiser that is educated about green features, you need to work with the right lender because they are the person who hires the appraiser.

The appraiser needs to now a list of what has been done ot the house; cost of the improvements; savings associated with the improvement; EPS or HERS Scores; etc.

Washington Environmental Council, Rashad Morris

Local non-profit organization focused on environmental conservation. He researches policy and crafts up laws. Then the organization advocates for them state-wide. They were involved with I-937, getting the Centralia plant off of coal, and electronics recycling. Submitted a proposal that would require having all houses get some kind of energy rating. He would like to send out a request to gather input on what this law should look like. If you are a seller looking to sell your home, you would contact your utility and get an audit from them. It would be at no cost to the seller. As the seller, you would be required (prior to the appraisal) you would need to disclose the report to the buyer. Within next month they will see if the entire environmental community will get behind it. WEC may run with it anyway.

Contact: Rashad Morris e-mail: rashad@wecprotects.org

Tech Discussion – Charlie Rogers – Habitat Audits
Why should we all be solving the same problems when we can work together? The HPW forum is a place for us to collaborate and we want to bring some of that technical information sharing into our general meetings. This month HPW introduces a new, short part of its general meetings where members can share technical problems and the solutions they have developed. This week Charlie Rogers will kick it off by sharing how he deals with upgrading light fixtures where standard CFLs don’t work well. He will demonstrate some better performing LEDs as well as a dimmer switch that he shows his customers as part of an energy audit.

• Upcoming Trainings

Built Green Conference in Issaquah

• Announcements

HPW has printed tri-folds (thanks Shannon!). If you are a renewed, company member you can get 20 free tri-folds.

• NEXT MEETINGS: October 11th and November 8th – Home Performance Marketing; Mold and Asbestos Issues; more local programs, like Sustainable Works Legislative Policy