The town of Babylon, on Long Island, N.Y., expanded the definition of solid waste to include energy waste, says director Sammy Chu, which gave the town access to waste funds for the PACE format Long Island Green Homes program. Contractors use modeling software to predict energy savings, with payments scaled to match the estimated monthly savings. The loans average $8,300 at a 3% interest rate. “In most cases, the savings more than cover the payment. We”re putting money in their pocket,” he says.Homeowners must qualify and pay $250 for an audit to demonstrate their commitment. “If they do the work, which happens 75% of the time, the audit fee is credited,” Chu says, noting that free audit programs have very low closing rates. The city pays the contractor directly and the homeowner receives monthly invoices.
The audits must be completed by one of the town”s eight approved auditors, and the town requires both the auditor and the contractor to be certified by the Building Performance Institute (BPI). The same company that does the audit can do the installation, and the program also requires post-installation audits.
Alure Home Improvements, in East Meadow, N.Y., is an approved auditor. Building analyst Hubie Van Meurs says that the company had the BPI certification required by the PACE program because it participates in Long Island Power Authority”s (LIPA) program, which has the same requirement. LIPA has aggressive rebate programs for its utility clients, Van Meurs says, and now those rebates are applied toward Babylon”s green program. Alure has completed about 24 projects in the Babylon program. He says that Alure uses the modeling software but takes a conservative approach in its predictions because “our mantra is to under-promise and over-deliver.”
Pilot Progress
Michigan Saves, a nonprofit set up as part of a grant to provide statewide energy-efficient upgrades, plans to use third-party lenders to loan money to homeowners and commercial entities, with customers paying back the loan through utility bills.
A centralized entity will process the loan applications and act as matchmaker between homeowner and lender. Contractors would act as indirect lenders, Michigan Saves operations manager Sally Talberg says, and would facilitate the application for the homeowner. Contractors will have to apply to participate and will likely need to meet some minimum standards, including having a license, insurance, and some building science training or certification, but the decision has not been finalized.
Michigan Saves is running a pilot of the program with Cherryland Electric Cooperative and Brown Lumber Installed Sales and Service, which manages a network of contractors, assisting customers through the process. Trevor Williams, department manager with Brown Lumber, says that he had more than 60 subcontractors in his contractor network who met the requirements, so they were able to quickly start working on the pilot.
Williams’ contractors take leads from Cherryland Electric and meet with homeowners to inspect the house. Brown Lumber and the contractor come up with a budget based on the measures they think the house needs, and the contractor helps the homeowner fill out the loan application. If it is approved, the homeowner signs an energy audit agreement. For the first 50 people who participate in the pilot, the audit is free. The contractor uses the audit to create a contract, which he sends to the credit union. The credit union writes a check endorsed to both the homeowner and the contractor, which the homeowner usually signs over to the contractor.
“One of the biggest benefits is getting the money up-front,” Williams says. “In this economy, vendors are asking for payment up-front, so this allows materials to come through for a smooth process.” He says that of 97 total inquiries, Brown Lumber’s contractor network has completed six projects with a total of $18,969 in loans. Another 13 projects are in the beginning stages, and 78 projects failed to qualify for the program.
?Nina Patel, senior editor, Remodeling.
Effect of Home Star on Local Programs
- The proposed Home Star legislation’s Silver Star segment allows “qualified” contractors to do the work, while Gold Star requires that contractors have Building Performance Institute or other accreditation. Most of the program’s $6 billion is earmarked for Silver Star. But, according to Hubie Van Muers, building analyst for Alure Home Improvements, in East Meadow, N.Y., Gold Star offers greater value to homeowners. And, as an accredited contractor, Alure would prefer that the bulk of the money go to Gold Star. Van Muers, is also interested to see whether the final bill would allow homeowners to apply local rebates.
- Harlan Lachman of PAYS (Pay As You Save) says that with Home Star, homeowners will get back in federal rebates 50% of their money spent on home improvements. They will have to finance the other 50%.
- Bill Hosken, budget and policy manager for Atlanta’s Division of Sustainability, says that if Home Star passes, the city may shift the focus of its planned Atlanta SHINE (Sustainable Home Initiative for a New Economy) program. “We might change the way we structure the rebate program, maybe move it away from a focus on financing,” he says. ?N.P.