Over 1,000 Ann Arbor Homes Now Have Home Energy Scores

 The City of Ann Arbor is celebrating the second anniversary of its Home Energy Rating Disclosure Ordinance (HERD), which has helped over 1,000 Ann Arbor Homes receive free Home Energy Scores since the ordinance took effect on March 12, 2024. The HERD Ordinance helps homebuyers understand their potential energy usage by requiring sellers to obtain a Home Energy Score Report before listing their home for sale, and to publish the information from the report in the home’s public listing. This report provides information on a home’s projected energy use so prospective buyers can consider the full cost of home ownership as part of their home buying process.   

“HERD helps make energy use visible and accessible during the home buying process,” said Jerrell Wylie Community Energy Official from the City of Ann Arbor Office of Sustainability and Innovations. “Providing a Home Energy Score before a home is purchased supports resident understanding of how homes perform and where opportunities exist for increased energy savings, comfort improvements, and electrification.”  

Now in its third year, the program is scaling up its impact by reaching out to new homeowners to connect them to the City’s A2ZERO Home Energy Rebates and other programs that help increase health, reduce energy use and make progress towards full home decarbonization. This ordinance supports Ann Arbor’s broader effort to move toward carbon neutrality and the electrification of residential properties.   

The Home Energy Rating Disclosure ordinance supports A²ZERO, the City of Ann Arbor’s plan, vision, framework, and associated actions to achieving a just and equitable transition to community-wide carbon neutrality. To learn more about the Home Energy Rating Disclosure Ordinance and A²ZERO and how to get involved, visit a2gov.org/sustainability.