It’s official – as a certified contractor offering Home Energy Scores to homeowners within the City of Milwaukie, and throughout the Portland metro area, Healthy Habitat has scored over 4,000 homes. Making Healthy Habitat the leader in this service, and the contractor of choice for both Realtors and Homeowners. Here are some more quick facts about what we do:
• Of the 29 Home Energy Score assessment companies certified by the City of Portland, only two are 501c-3 registered non-profit organizations (including Healthy Habitat).
• You don’t have to be for-profit to be cutting-edge. Healthy Habitat is the leading HES provider in Portland: We have scored 20% of the Portland homes that have participated in the program since 2018.
• According to the Department of Energy, close to 155,000 homes nationwide have now received a Home Energy Score. That means Healthy Habitat has scored close to 3% of the participating home in the nation! According to the DOE, Home Energy Scores have contributed to several billion dollars’ worth of energy savings as part of its Better Buildings Initiative.
• Home buyers are paying attention – In a 2020 City of Portland survey, two-thirds of home buyers reported that the Home Energy Score was useful in their decision-making process.
Home Sellers Beware – HES Enforcement to Resume May 1
Due to the pandemic, the City of Portland paused its enforcement of the Home Energy Score ordinance last year. Though technically the HES was still required, and plenty of homeowners went ahead and complied with the policy before listing their home for sale, the City did not issue its regular $500 fine to those who didn’t.
According to the city’s Home Energy Score website, that will change on May 1, 2021, when enforcement will resume. The City of Milwaukie never officially put their enforcement on hold, and they have a similar process for notifying home sellers who are in violation of the Home Energy Score policy, and issuing a fine if they don’t comply after the notice.
Of course, as before the pandemic, sellers can qualify for a free Home Energy Score if their household income is at or below 80% of the Area Median Income. And the following exemptions still apply:
• Home is in foreclosure, being sold in lieu of foreclosure, or a pre-foreclosure sale
• Home is part of a trustee’s sale
• Home will be sold at a public auction because of property taxes due
• Home is uninhabitable due to a casualty (eg fire, earthquake, landslide)
• Home has been condemned by a government agency
• Other exemptions will be made on a case-by-case basis.