Affordable Housing & Low-Income Housing Communities

From Individual Measures to Whole-House Improvements

ENERGY STAR® offers proven, turn-key solutions that can be implemented by affordable housing stakeholders to improve energy efficiency.

Helpful Resources

• U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD): HUD provides several resources dedicated to reducing energy consumption in HUD-funded and HUD-insured housing.
  • Enhancing Energy Efficiency and Green Building Design in HUD Section 202 and 811 Programs
  • Public Housing Environmental & Conservation Clearinghouse
  • Building ENERGY STAR Homes in HUD’s HOME Program
• U.S. Department of Energy (DOE): DOE leverages its network of research and industry partners to develop innovative, cost-effective, and energy-saving solutions for homes and buildings.
• Enterprise Green Communities: Enterprise has incorporated ENERGY STAR certified home requirements into the energy efficiency component of its Green Communities criteria.
• LEED for Homes: LEED has incorporated ENERGY STAR requirements into its certification program for homes.
• DSIRE: Database of State Incentives for Renewables and Energy.

Efficient Product Resources

Product Procurement Tools

• ENERGY STAR Certified Products: Information about, and tools for, finding products in more than 70 product categories that have earned ENERGY STAR certification for superior energy efficiency.
• ENERGY STAR Product Finder: Provides consumer access to information about ENERGY STAR certified products by brand, model number and product features.
• ENERGY STAR Purchasing and Procurement Template: Outlined steps and a sample letter to make an official commitment on behalf of an organization to purchase ENERGY STAR certified products.

Incentive Locator Tools

• ENERGY STAR Rebate Finder: A searchable tool for identifying special offers such as sales tax exemptions, credits, or rebates available from ENERGY STAR partners
• Federal Tax Credits for Consumer Energy Efficiency: Information about available federal tax credits for consumer energy efficiency measures.

Related EPA Programs

• EPA’s Indoor airPLUS Program: Indoor airPLUS labeled homes are designed and built to help protect families from indoor air pollution.
• EPA’s WaterSense® Program: WaterSense promotes water-efficient products as well as WaterSense labeled homes.
• EPA’s Green Power Partnership: The Green Power Partnership encourages organizations to use green power to reduce the environmental impact of electricity use. Benefits of partnership include access to expert advice, tools and resources, and public recognition opportunities.
• EPA’s Smart Growth Program: Tools, research, partnerships, grants, and technical assistance that help communities grow more sustainably.
• EPA’s State and Local Climate and Energy Program: Technical assistance, analytical tools, and outreach support to state, local, and Tribal governments.