At the 2025 Energy and Environmental Building Alliance (EEBA) High Performance Home Builder Summit, the EEBA addressed how homebuilders can leverage HERS scores. The EEBA acknowledged that while building energy efficient and high-performance homes, sometimes appraisal values do not reflect the work of the builder or the homes’ energy-saving qualities.
The EEBA urged that the tides are shifting in the industry for builders to be rewarded for building performance.
One reason is that lender policies now recognizing performance. This is exemplified by Freddie Mac’s selling guide. It now recognizes HERS scores and allows adjustments reflective of energy savings. That means conventional loan will reflect value improvements from high-performance homes.
Additionally, with work from by companies such as Accelerated Appraisal Management Company and the establishment of the Homebuilding Energy Efficiency Academy, appraisers nationwide are being trained in the methodology to convert documented annual utility savings into measurable appraisal adjustments. This means that builders who secure third-party HERS scores, model the savings and work with lenders/appraisers up front are seeing appraisal values reflective of the energy savings. Some reporting from 2.5% to 4% higher than standard homes, simply because the adjustment for utility cost savings is included. One builder shared an example, “A home valued at $494,990 had an adjustment that brought the appraised value $5,100 above contract price—thanks only to the documented energy savings.”
