As you may know, the Austin City Council is considering an ordinance that would require homeowners to upgrade or retrofit their homes with energy efficient features and obtain a “Certificate of Compliance” before they can sell it. This could potentially cost homeowners thousands of dollars and prevent many, particularly those facing difficult financial situations, from buying or selling a home.

In early 2007, Austin Mayor Will Wynn released the Climate Protection Plan with the goal of making Austin the “greenest” city in the country. One tenant of that plan involves the “Proposed Point of Sale Ordinance”, which would establish mandatory energy efficiency standards for existing homes. The city’s proposal would require that homeowners upgrade their homes and obtain a “Certificate of Compliance” from the city before they’re able to sell it. We oppose this plan for several reasons:

• Affordability – As currently proposed, these upgrades are estimated to cost Austin homeowners thousands of dollars. This type of out-of-pocket expense will prevent many homeowners from having the option to sell their home, particularly if they need to sell due to a difficult financial situation. In addition, the cost will inevitably be passed on to homebuyers, making it even more difficult to afford a home in Austin.
  
  
• Extended sales process – Arranging the additional inspections needed to obtain a Certificate of Compliance (not to mention actually making the upgrades to properties) would draw out the time required to sell homes substantially. Further, Austin doesn’t currently have enough home inspectors in our city to fill the anticipated demand, promising even further delays.
  
  
• Do we want to require a “license” for homeowners to sell? – As it’s proposed now, this ordinance would essentially require that homeowners apply to the city for a “license” to sell their home (i.e. Certificate of Compliance). Do we want to spend our city’s resources on this activity and add this complication to the real estate process? Austinites buy and sell more than 25,000 homes each year, so one can imagine the cost and bureaucracy that would be required to manage that type of volume through the city.

We support initiatives to promote energy efficiency in Austin, but the mandates under consideration are the wrong approach. Instead, we believe that a voluntary program that rewards Austinites in a meaningful way for making good decisions about energy efficiency is the right way to build long-lasting support.

Specifically, we think the Energy Efficiency Retrofit Task Force should examine the option of offering annual rewards for energy efficiency improvements. They can do this through a series of options, such as: local homestead exemptions, sales tax exemptions and an expansion of the Austin Energy rebate and 0% fixed-interest loan program. Not only would this program increase the number of participants, it would put more money into the pockets of those already focused on efficiency and encourage them to go even further in their efforts to care for our environment.

The City of Austin and Austin Energy already have the initial framework program in place through which this could be implemented (the “Home Performance with Energy Star” program) and two sections of the Texas Constitution allow for such a local option homestead exemptions (Article VIII, Section 1-g; Article VIII, Section 1-l). Both incentives enable homeowners to choose the best options for them and the loan program could be reserved for low-income and first-time homeowners. Such incentives would allow the City of Austin to promote energy efficiency in a positive manner and be recognized among the citizenry as a leader and champion for the environment and housing affordability.

As the Austin Board of REALTORS®, we also want to partner with the city for energy efficiency. Comprised of 9,000 REALTORS® who conduct 25,000 real estate transactions per year in Austin, we have an excellent opportunity to educate Austin homeowners about efficiency and encourage them to take advantage of the many programs available to them.

Specifically, such a program could include:

• Creation and promotion of a co-branded campaign with the City of Austin and the Austin Board of REALTORS® (ABoR) that promotes energy efficiency for existing homes;
• Creation of a set of energy efficiency standards that designate a home as “Austin Energy Recommended” to be promoted on “For Sale” signs and in other promotional materials, including the Multiple Listing Service (MLS);
• Creation and promotion of a “Green REALTOR®” designation that identifies a REALTOR® as particularly knowledgeable about environmental issues (including class instruction collaboratively developed by the City of Austin and ABoR);
• Creation of a Green Living Packet that REALTORS® would provide to clients at closings that includes information about Austin Energy’s efficiency programs, rebates and tax exemptions, with particular focus on encouraging Austinites to schedule a free energy audit of their new home;
• Addition of a “Green Living” page to AustinHomeSearch.com (which receives 70,000 unique visitors each month) educating homebuyers and sellers about the many ways they can make their homes and lifestyles more environmentally friendly;
• Introduction of energy audits for single family homes at the time utilities are transferred;
• Providing space on ABoR’s Sellers Disclosure Form to disclose the findings of the energy audits; and
• Other ideas for promoting green living in Austin, such as an Austin Energy booth at Realty Round Up (ABoR’s annual convention that draws upwards of 3,000 attendees each year).

Austinites are independent free-thinkers, which is how we’ve come to be leaders in environmental protection. A voluntary program that offers meaningful incentives and consumer education is the right way for Austin to achieve energy efficiency.

Currently, this proposal is under consideration by the Energy Efficiency Retrofit Task Force. Created by the Austin City Council, this task force is determining the specific guidelines of the ordinance (though it has already been determined that the ordinance will require existing homes to meet mandatory standards for energy efficiency before they can be sold).

After the Energy Efficiency Retrofit Task Force completes its task, they will make recommendations to the Austin City Council. From there, Austin City Council members will vote on whether the ordinance will go into effect.