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By Nathan Peck | MiBiz
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Andy Wierda, principal of MCA Equity, has used the Better Buildings for Michigan initiative to increase the energy efficiency of his properties. PHOTO: NATHAN PECK

GRAND RAPIDS — If landlords are worried about their tenants making rent payments, they might turn their attention to helping lower the other bills their renters are paying, in particular their enegy bills.

Andy Wierda, a landlord with properties around Grand Rapids, said increasing energy efficiency in his homes helps tenants keep their utility bills low. Through a state program, Wierda has been able to make improvements, add insulation, shore-up drafty windows and make his properties more energy efficient and livable as a result.

The Better Buildings for Michigan initiative, a two-year, $30 million state program funded through stimulus dollars, has a lofty goal: make 11,000 Michigan homes more energy efficient.

Selma Tucker, regional coordinator for Better Buildings, said that the state’s Michigan Saves program has leveraged $150 million in loans for energy efficiency improvements for the state’s homeowners and businesses.

Better Buildings for Michigan launched in January and may prove to be a model for the U.S. Department of Energy as the agency tries to drive energy efficiency into the home, said Tucker.

“DOE has been banging their heads against the wall trying to get middle-income people to make investments in energy efficiency,” Tucker said. “They’ve charged Michigan with helping to write the book on this. With middle-income families, there is a trust element that is difficult to get beyond. … There is a sense of it being too good to be true.”

Better Buildings provides homeowners with subsidized energy audits and recommendations for improvements to increase energy efficiency. Those suggestions range from caulking windows and increasing the amount of insulation in the home to installing high-efficiency furnaces. The program can then connect homeowners or landlords with no-interest loans to make the improvements.

Better Buildings for Michigan partners with organizations homeowners trust, such as Consumers Energy, and regional organizations like the West Michigan Environmental Action Council.

“Because of the community outreach aspect of the program, as good as it is, our bread and butter is making connections with neighborhood organizations – it was a natural fit,” said Ann Erhardt, energy programs coordinator for WMEAC. “Energy efficiency is one of our core initiatives. There are so many energy impacts from our choices. Every recommendation comes with an energy ROI. It is a measurement: If you insulate to a higher R value, you will see this return. There is a lot of low-hanging fruit out there — it is actually fruit lying on the ground.”

After receiving a list of recommendations, Better Buildings can connect homeowners with securitized, guaranteed loans. The program ensures that homeowners have skin in the game, but allows them to make improvements with minimal impact on their budgets.

“If homeowners don’t have equity in a house or don’t want to put it on a credit card, they could get access to the loan program,” Tucker said. “Homeowners know that something is wrong, but don’t know where to get started. You can spend a lot of money fixing the wrong things. The home energy audit will pay back fivefold over time because you are spending money on projects that will have a real impact on your energy usage.”

Through November, the Grand Rapids Better Buildings initiative has completed audits on 700 homes in the city. Tucker expects to have 2,500 homes completed by the time the program ends in 2012. The state organization is working to determine what the next steps will be.

“When we are done, we will have failed plenty of times, but we will have successes as well. We are looking at how to serve organizations and people in the future, ensuring the sustainability of this is a big deal,” Tucker said. “We have a strong partner in Michigan Saves, and the financial portion of this should exist in perpetuity. That financing arm of it is not the major question any more. It is how do we get more people to want to do this.”

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TAGS:

• andy wierda
• grand rapids
• u.s. department of energy