A recent National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) survey revealed that a majority of prospective homebuyers rate energy-efficient features, such as above-code insulation and ENERGY STAR-compliant appliances and building products (including windows, doors, and HVAC systems), as essential or desirable. While the consumer desire for energy-efficient features isn’t new, it has only grown in importance in recent years.
A decade ago, the average U.S. home size was 2,657 square feet, and the average household size was 2.58 persons. Today, the square footage and household size have decreased in America for one simple reason: cost. However, it is not just the cost to build but also the cost to operate a home, which can be a buyer’s second-largest expense after the mortgage.
The Trump Administration’s announcement that it plans to shutter the EPA ENERGY STAR program reverberated across the industry this week. While much of the attention is focused on the impacts on appliances, the housing and building performance industry would be heavily impacted by the end of the ENERGY STAR for residential and commercial buildings. After all, ENERGY STAR is foundational to many high-performance building programs.
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“Strengthening building efficiency codes is an essential element of increasing resilience and improving health and safety,” concludes a new report from Just Solutions, a climate organization that works with communities disproportionately impacted by climate change to improve outcomes.
The report, released last month, urges the adoption of the 2021 IECC efficiency standards in new single-family construction, conducting more benefit-cost analyses of investments in building energy efficiency retrofits, increasing the passive survivability of homes, and committing to a holistic approach to resilience to mitigate the impacts of worsening climate extremes. The organization joins a long list of NGOs and for-profit companies, including Zillow, now advocating for increased resiliency in U.S. housing.
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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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With the publishing of the 2024 International Energy Conservation Code (IECC), The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has issued new requirements for Energy Star Single-Family New Homes (SFNH) National v3.3 and Multifamily New Construction (MFNC) National v1.3, for states that adopt the 2024 International Energy Conservation Code (IECC), or equivalent.
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U.S. heating costs are likely to increase by 8.7 percent, to an average of $941, according to the National Energy Assistance Directors Association (NEADA), which represents state administrators of federal utility aid programs for low-income households. While cost increases for all heating types will occur, the expected increase will affect consumers who heat their homes with electricity the hardest, with bills likely to increase by 14.2 percent to an average of $1,189 versus last year’s $1,040, according to NEADA. The increase is mainly due to the rise in energy use following the recent severe cold snap that blanketed much of the nation with snow and frigid temperatures.
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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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Electricity prices across America continue to increase even as the price of natural gas for electric generation is near an all-time low. Electric utility costs have increased by 24.8 percent in three years. They will continue to escalate until the Federal Electricity Energy Regulatory Commission acts to protect consumers versus the utility companies that build transmission lines.
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As home builders work to decarbonize construction, sourcing low-carbon building materials (including insulation) is an important objective. However, it can be challenging to make informed choices when misleading information about the carbon impacts of products is commonly cited.
NAIMA’s new guide, Setting the Record Straight: Insulation and Low Carbon Buildings, details the embodied carbon of common insulation products, highlights the rapid payback period, and dispels the myth that cellulose and wood fiber insulation products are carbon negative.
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