Advancing Home Energy Labeling through Data Standardization

Making energy efficiency features visible at the time of home sale is a strategy with transformational potential. If homeowners know that the value of their home is increased by energy efficiency improvements, in the same way that it is enhanced by more visible amenities such as granite countertops, they will be much more likely to invest in those improvements.

HPC believes that providing real estate professionals and appraisers with high-quality information and data about a home’s energy efficiency features is crucial for demonstrating this “energy efficiency premium.” To this end, Julie Caracino, Director of Research and Standards, is leading a Building Performance Institute (BPI) working group to update and expand BPI-2101-S-2013 Standard Requirements for a Certificate of Residential Energy Efficiency Features and Performance.

BPI-2101 is a national data standard that establishes requirements for certificates that document a home’s energy efficient features and, if relevant, predicted energy savings or other performance indicators, such as a score or label. The BPI-2101 standard uses HPXML data to establish a verified record of a homeowner’s investment in energy efficiency.

Several Home Performance with ENERGY STAR program sponsors are currently issuing a BPI-2101-compliant certificate to homeowners who complete the program. Version 2.0 of the standard, which is planned for publication this summer, will be updated to reflect new uses for home energy data, including information released at the time a home is listed for sale to meet state or local home energy disclosure policies. Data elements defined in the standard will also be aligned with the Real Estate Standards Organization’s Data Dictionary to facilitate interoperability with the real estate sector.