The Earth Advantage Institute's new Energy Performance Score provides a more comprehensive means of helping buyers and sellers rate a home's energy efficiency.

Whether you’re buying a home or looking to sell, the new Energy Performance Score (EPS) will give you an advantage, just as the creator’s name implies. The Earth Advantage Institute (EAI) is a non-profit organization in Oregon that created the EPS system as a means of grading the energy efficiency of homes. It’s a way for buyers to choose a home that will save them the most energy (i.e., money), and a way for sellers to increase the efficiency (i.e., value) of their homes through clean energy renovations. Perhaps the EPS system will serve as an effective supplement to the Obama administration’s aggressive encouragement of clean energy home upgrades.

In his article, “Energy Performance Labeling as a Green Home Market Driver,” EAI’s Program Manager David Heslam notes:

“The US has put aside $5 billion in the stimulus package for weatherization with the intent to upgrade at best a million homes (at an estimated $5,000 per job). But this raises a serious question about the scale of our commitment. One million homes is one percent of the estimated number of residences in the U.S.

“If we are really serious about energy savings, what about the other 100 million American homes that representing 20% of our annual energy consumption?”

EAI believes the answer to this question lies in the creation of a comprehensive rating system that not only takes into account energy savings, but also carbon emissions.

To that end, the EAI’s Energy Performance Score rates homes on 32 data points covering a wide range of home energy elements, including efficiency as it relates to:

• Air leakage
• Ceiling and attic insulation
• Wall insulation
• Floor insulation
• Windows insulation value and tightness
• Heating and cooling
• Ducts seals and insulation
• Water heating
• Lights and appliances

The Energy Performance Score system has attracted nationwide attention, with all of the following considering the recommendations outlined in the pilot program’s 2009 report — the City of Chicago, the City of Houston, the Clinton Climate Initiative, the U.S. Department of Energy, the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development.

In fact, EAI welcomes any state or municipality to test the pilot program. For more in-depth information about getting your community on board, check out the EPS pilot resource page. Beyond that, the EPS initiative serves as a welcome reminder that – no matter what sort of rating system you use – the best way to sell a home these days is to paint it green.

Meredith Simonds Conservation David Heslam, EAI, Earth Advantage Institute, energy efficiency, Energy Performance Score, EPS, home