Achieving the net-zero buildings target by 2050 will require retrofits to 6 million North American homes annually. For municipalities, this means engaging citizens to take action and upgrade their homes. That’s no easy task, especially since homeowners can experience significant barriers to undertaking retrofits. Successful citizen-led home decarbonization will only happen if we use better data to break down barriers and provide more opportunities for homeowners to access financial support.
In this article, we’ll discuss three powerful strategies municipalities can use to drive citizen-led decarbonization of homes:
Transparency is not just a buzzword; it’s a proven strategy. Collaborative efforts with stakeholders, including industry leaders and local communities, have demonstrated that open communication and alignment lead to success. Let’s discuss three tactics that enable transparency and collaboration for home efficiency program design and deployment:
When it comes to assigning energy scores and recommendations to manage their largest financial asset, homeowners want to know that their home data is protected, they want to know who has access to their data, and they want to know how their score was calculated. Additionally, they want to know all of the options for improving their scores and making their home more comfortable.
As we move forward with a collaborative approach to home energy data management, we need transparency to be a top priority if we want to earn the trust of homeowners.
Although a digital approach to home energy assessments is relatively new, the technology is being developed to adhere to existing standards established by NRCan, utilities, WCAG, and others. Some of the progressive municipalities across Canada and the US that have building labeling legislation have adopted web-based platforms to aggregate data and engage citizens. All programs and participants will benefit if municipalities are aligned on the standards they adopt rather than working in silos.
It is well understood that homeowners find it challenging to navigate the retrofit journey, from energy assessment to retrofit planning, funding applications, project execution, and claiming rebates. The process can be streamlined if all stakeholders who support homeowners in their retrofit journey (utilities, municipalities, banks, energy professionals, contractors, etc.) can access a common record of the building, which is continually updated in a secure, permissions-based building ledger.
Many municipalities have funds designed for home energy retrofit programs, but this funding is insufficient to fully retrofit every home to net zero. Public funding has kick-started the process, but billions of dollars are still required. To achieve our net zero goals, governments must be able to attract private capital (e.g. bank “green loans”) to invest in home retrofits.
Let’s discuss three ways to do that:
Municipalities can create the conditions for private capital investment with quality home energy data. As banks begin to report on financed carbon, they will be more attracted to communities with emissions data at the building level. With quality data, banks can assess the financial opportunity and carbon impact of retrofit loans within a community and can target financing offers accordingly.
Banks prefer loans with less risk, so municipalities can promote energy efficiency retrofit loans as low-risk investments. This is because homes with detailed data about their energy use before and after upgrades make it easier for banks to assess the impact and risk. An energy-efficient home with lower operating costs might be less likely to default on a loan or mortgage, making it a safer investment.
Municipalities that have access to low-carbon plans for their citizens can create a direct connection between homeowners and financial institutions. Banks can then increase the uptake of energy efficiency retrofit loans by engaging with homeowners who are better informed on their home’s retrofit needs.
Home retrofit programs have done a great job of enabling retrofit activity among homeowners with the knowledge and means to do a project. But what about homeowners who face barriers? To retrofit all homes to net zero, we must break down these barriers for an equitable transition.
Let’s discuss four strategies to create equitable programs:
The first step to breaking down barriers is to identify the retrofit needs of all homes at the individual building level. This data can be used to provide retrofit recommendations tailored to each home and to design funding programs that fit the needs of specific neighborhoods and income levels.
Renters often cannot access the same programs as homeowners, and non-owner-occupied buildings tend to fall behind when it comes to energy efficiency and comfort. By cross-referencing building-level energy data with owner occupancy data, program managers can use a targeted approach for neighborhoods that would benefit from programs incentivizing landlords to perform retrofits.
With limited funding and significant barriers to participation, it is critical to design programs for low-income households that reduce emissions, improve home comfort, and minimize operating costs. There are many very successful programs of this nature across the country. Building-level energy data at 100% coverage, combined with local demographic information, gives municipalities the power to design even more impactful programs.
We know that more specific energy data and personalized retrofit recommendations drive more retrofit action, so consider these examples when designing home energy reports for building owners:
As less than 1% of the building stock is net-zero or net-zero ready, nearly every house can reap the benefits of improved energy efficiency and low-carbon retrofits. On top of enhanced comfort and reduced emissions, many homeowners underestimate how quickly retrofits can pay for themselves by lowering operating costs. Homeowners feel living costs rising; energy included – an experience that adds urgency. Homeowners can take retrofit action with confidence if governments clearly communicate the economic reality in a personalized and timebound way for the short, medium, and long term.
Research and real-world examples have proven that understanding the total impact of carbon—on costs, comfort, and climate—leads to informed and beneficial decisions. Homeowners equipped with this knowledge make choices that align with their values and the planet’s needs. In 2024, banks will have to report on financed carbon and will view home efficiency upgrades as a mechanism to de-risk and decarbonize their investments. Soon, homeowners who can show a low-carbon home score may be able to take advantage of “green loans” with favorable terms. Municipalities can drive more of these projects by using platforms that encourage collaboration and data-sharing between multiple stakeholders (homeowners, banks, insurers, city officials, contractors, real estate professionals, and more).
It’s not enough to tell homeowners that retrofits are beneficial and to offer them a one-size-fits-all financial incentive. Homeowners want simple, personalized advice about their homes that meets their level of understanding and interest. Moreover, they want direct access to funding that matches the recommendations they’ve received. Successful initiatives are underway using web-based tools to guide homeowners through this process. This tailored information and support make the transition to low–carbon living more attainable and appealing.
As building labeling and digital home energy scoring become more commonly used to drive awareness and retrofit action, municipalities need to be sensitive of how homeowners will perceive these programs. When engaged homeowners receive a “score” for their home, they need to know they have control. Municipalities should consider giving homeowners the ability to validate and add data (through questionnaires or utility data) to make the score more relevant and improve it with retrofit projects. Give them multiple retrofit recommendations and financing that fit their budget and lifestyle.
Transparency, collaboration, attracting private capital, and equitable access must be considered for success when municipalities design programs and policies to encourage citizen-led decarbonization retrofits. Many progressive municipalities are implementing mandatory building labeling legislation to engage homeowners, tying it in with web-based citizen portals, tailored home data, and financial incentive programs. These digital tools are being leveraged by municipalities today, so it’s an exciting time to see how homeowners will receive and interact with them. To learn about some of these ongoing projects, feel free to reach out to the Climative Team.
Micheline has over 25 years of strategic business development and sales experience working with solutions for home energy efficiency, homeowner education, and public sector enterprise-level cloud services. She believes executive sponsorship, change management, and stakeholder buy-in are key to digital transformation.
Climative provides a collaborative AI-assisted data platform for organizations to enable personalized advice and offers to building owners, taking the guesswork out of building upgrades and transforming the low carbon economy.
