Insulation Institute Blog

Posts Categorized: Energy Efficiency

Do Code Updates Affect Construction?

The American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy (ACEEE) released an analysis this week that shows that in states that have adopted the 2021 International Energy Conservation Code (IECC), there has not been a decline in new construction homes. This finding directly contradict claims made by some home builders that more stringent energy code requirements deter new construction.

Using data from the U.S. Census Bureau, ACEEE examined single-family home permit rates in the five largest states that adopted the 2021 IECC. It found that before the code update, the month-to-month number of permits fluctuated up and down but roughly followed national building trends.

Examining Construction After Code Changes

After the code update, ACEEE observed permits continued to bounce up and down, generally following national trends. Thus, code updates had no apparent impact on new home production.  

The bill savings each month dwarf the smaller increase in mortgage payments, says ACEEE. NAIMA’s newly released guide, “Insulation, Energy Codes & Housing Affordability,” also substantiates the positive impact more modern building energy efficiency codes have on housing affordability.

Other Studies Support This Finding

ACEEE notes that two separate studies support the idea that advanced energy codes do not impact housing construction. A study by Midwest Energy Efficiency Alliance and Slipstream showed that strengthened energy codes in Illinois did not affect housing construction in the state compared to adjacent counties in a neighboring state. Separately, a study this year from Canary Media found that a Massachusetts town that adopted a far more stringent code (requiring all electric homes) experienced a new construction boom.

Why It Matters

ACEEE’s findings show that new residential construction is cyclical, but energy code updates do not adversely impact new home construction. Solving America’s housing crisis will require a continued focus on reducing ownership costs to help affordability while also building more homes.

“We can and must advance both at the same time,” ACEEE says.

Do Code Updates Affect Construction?

Can AI Make Energy Retrofit Decisions?

Michigan State University (MSU) researchers have published analysis that concludes that large AI models can produce effective retrofit decisions but are less likely to identify which can deliver the best result most quickly and at the lowest cost. The study is one of the first to look at how large language models (LLMs) perform in determining how to assess efficient and effective building energy retrofits.

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Study Reports Cost Impact of Tariffs for Homes

A new study from Evernest, a real estate and property management firm based in Birmingham, AL, quantifies the impact that tariffs on construction materials such as steel, copper, drywall, and lumber will have on the cost of building a new home in each state.

The study results show that tariffs are already impacting costs for materials, with prices rising from a low of $26,180 in Oklahoma to $102,400 in Hawaii.

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5 Housing-Related Stories You May Have Missed This Week

Insulation Institute focuses this week on five housing-related stories that are also, in part, affordability and energy efficiency stories. You may have missed a few of these, so we hope this quick recap will be informative and timely.

Harvard’s 2025 State of the Nation’s Housing Released

Harvard University’s Joint Center for Housing Studies (JCHS) released the 2025 State of the Nation’s Housing Report on Tuesday. The report highlights a litany of concerns for the U.S. housing market and home buyers, including skyrocketing insurance premiums and property taxes, a sharp rise in homelessness, and growing dangers of climate disasters. Despite these challenges and in the face of diminished federal support, state and local governments are ramping up efforts to tackle affordable housing (which is also challenged by increasing homeowner costs, like utilities). For example, Minnesota has approved a bill allocating $242M to housing finance and another $100M in infrastructure bonds to support affordable housing development.

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Mitigating Energy Upgrade Costs for Renters

According to research from the Sierra Club, roughly 50 percent of tenants in the U.S. are cost-burdened by utility payments. As building owners nationwide address much-needed energy efficiency improvements in aging rental housing stock, there’s a growing emphasis on mitigating steep rent increases for renters.

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Voters Want Efficiency. Are They Getting It?

New research released this week from Data for Progress reveals that a bipartisan majority of American voters know about energy efficiency (68 percent) and that it can reduce energy consumption at home and lower household costs. Additionally, U.S. Energy Information Administration data shows that U.S. energy consumption per household declined by 32 percent between 1980 and 2015 even with rising electrification and appliance use. Yet, despite the broad awareness of and appreciation for energy efficiency, most voters are unaware of top actions and incentives for efficiency improvements.

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Significant Use Shows Value of 45L

The American Council for an Energy-Efficiency Economy (ACEEE) recently released a new fact sheet on the use of the 45L Builder New Home Tax Credit. The credit aided home builders nationwide last year – spurring the construction of 350,000 new energy-efficient homes, which resulted in significant cost savings for home buyers. That amounts to roughly 22 percent of new homes built in 2024.

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Prepare to Pay More for Home Energy?

This week, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) forecasted that U.S. natural gas prices in 2025 and 2026 will increase by 21 percent. The projected increase in natural gas prices tempers hopes that home heating costs for Americans would decrease and comes at a time when America’s economy is dealing with persistent inflation. About 60 percent of American homes rely on natural gas.

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1,000 Companies Ask Lawmakers to Save 25C

Over 1,000 insulation, HVAC, and manufacturing companies signed a letter to House Ways and Means and Senate Finance Committee leaders last week urging them to save the 25C Energy Efficient Home Improvement Tax Credit. The $1,200 homeowner tax credit is vulnerable to repeal as congressional lawmakers identify cost savings to pay for extending the corporate and individual tax rates set during the first Trump Administration.

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Getting Higher Performance at Lower Costs

Maximizing energy performance to cost in new construction homes is every home builder’s goal and every home buyer’s expectation. Research shows that home buyers want energy efficiency but also need affordability. For builders committed to maximizing efficiency, fiberglass and mineral wool insulation products offer both performance and cost-effectiveness.

In this week’s blog, we highlight three publications that demonstrate that fiberglass and mineral wool can be used to meet any high-performance building approach. 

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