Will your efficiency improvements mean an increase of your resale value?

There are a lot of costs in owning a home. Budgeting for homeownership means considering all of the costs, beyond the four we most commonly think of:

• Principal on our mortgage,
• Interest on that mortgage,
• Taxes
• Insurance

The mortgage and real estate industries refer to these costs as PITI.

However, anyone with a home knows there are many other costs of owning. We focus on another cost that many overlook: Energy.

Energy may not be part of PITI, but Vermonters spend over $3,000 on their energy bills every year on average. Based on the average Vermont mortgage payment, that’s like making two extra payments a year.

That’s why we are excited to announce with our partners a free new tool. The Vermont Home Energy Profile (VHEP) helps buyers and sellers alike connect the cost of energy to the value of a home.

We worked with many partners to help develop this new tool, and recently joined them in announcing its arrival. We’re grateful to all of our partners who worked hard to make VHEP available to Vermonters: Northeast Energy Efficiency Partnerships, Building Performance Professionals Association of Vermont, Burlington Electric Department, Vermont Association of Realtors®, Vermont Builders and Remodelers Association, Vermont Department of Public Service, Vermont Housing and Conservation Board, Vermont Office of Economic Opportunity, and VGS.

VHEP could add to the value homeowners already get from investing in energy efficiency. Many homeowners realize that energy efficiency has value. It improves comfort, saves money, and lowers carbon emissions. But now, energy efficiency investments could make a home worth more when it's time to sell.

Facing record-high prices in the real estate market, many homebuyers are taking a harder look at how much a home will cost them to own over the long term. VHEP helps make valuable information available, including:

• Type of fuel used in the home
• Expected annual electricity and heating costs
• Comparison of electricity and heating costs (to average homes of similar size and vintage)
• The presence of solar panels or electric vehicle charging infrastructure.

Even for homeowners who aren’t thinking of selling their home, VHEP is great way to understand their home’s energy costs, and how to lower them.

Efficiency Vermont can help homeowners who want to make their home more efficient. We offer incentives, expert advice, and a network of qualified contractors in our Efficiency Excellence Network to help them get the job done right.

Thanks to VHEP, Vermont is one step closer to making sure energy efficiency is part of the equation for buying a home. Check out the tool for yourself and see what you think! And give us a call if you’d like to talk to one of our customer support specialists about what programs and services are available to help you increase the energy efficiency, and the value, of your home.