Air sealing, insulation, new furnace — so many Home Energy Score improvements, so little time! With the many steps involved in selling a home, it seems that improving energy efficiency should be low on the to-do list. Yet improving your Portland Home Energy Score will make your home more competitive on the Portland market. So where to begin?
1. Check out common Home Energy Score improvements.
If you haven’t gotten your Home Energy Score Report yet, how do you know what kind of energy efficiency improvements your home needs?
A large percentage of homes in Portland are of similar size, square footage and general design. So it makes sense that, since the Home Energy Score policy was put into place 18 months ago, similar improvements have been suggested for a lot of these homes. We covered the most common improvements in a recent blog post — most of them are DIY!
2. Set a budget.
Unless money is no object, the first step for most Portland homeowners is going to be figuring out how much you can spend on home improvements, whether for the safety, appearance or energy efficiency of the home.
While some home energy improvements can be done for less than the cost of dinner out, other projects will set you back several hundred dollars. Keeping in mind that closing costs when selling a home usually equal 1-3% of the sales price, figure how much you might be able to spend on all the improving your home before you sell.
3. Safety first.
Prioritize improvements that are necessary for the safety of the home. For example, it doesn’t make sense to insulate the attic over replacing a rotten front porch! Also keep in mind that, unless the buyer is super energy-conscious, improvements that maximize curb appeal are probably going to go farther in improving your home’s value.
4. Small projects first
Yes, insulating the attic is daunting, but what about just doing the attic hatch? Have you checked your home for gaps and cracks yet? It might just take an hour or so to boost your Home Energy Score.
5. Do routine maintenance
These are things you should do before selling your home anyway: Replace HVAC filters, have the system serviced, secure loose or hanging insulation in the crawl space or attic. They all will impact your Home Energy Score.
6. Check contractor availability.
You might be all set to have insulation blown into the walls, but if you call a contractor the week before you want to have it done, it might not be feasible. If you’re in a rush, stick to DIY projects. Portland is still experiencing a relative contractor and handyman shortage so professionals might not be easily at hand to assist with energy efficiency improvements.
Ready to see how you did? Schedule your official Home Energy Score report using our easy online system.