February 25, 2019 – Albany, NY and Charlottesville, VA – Pearl Certification today announced that Pearl will be participating in a New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA)-sponsored pilot program. The pilot will test and measure the extent to which energy efficiency home certifications can encourage New York state homeowners to improve their homes’ energy efficiency through comprehensive upgrades and single-measure improvements.
“Pearl is proud to take part in this innovative pilot program,” said Pearl President and COO Robin LeBaron. “NYSERDA is a leader in testing and bringing new energy efficiency approaches to market. We believe this NYSERDA pilot will provide new evidence indicating the critical demand for energy-efficient home improvement certifications.”
Alicia Barton, President and CEO, NYSERDA said, “As part of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo’s ambitious 2025 energy efficiency targets, NYSERDA is exploring a number of market-based strategies for driving demand for energy efficiency upgrades. This pilot will provide insight into a new approach to help consumers understand the value of energy efficiency and how to improve the efficiency of their homes through the use of home energy ratings and certifications.”
NYSERDA this week launched the $1 million multi-year Home Energy Ratings Pilot to help one- to four-family homeowners who are ready to invest in their homes and are looking for independent, trustworthy energy performance information. Home Energy Ratings are similar to a Miles Per Gallon rating on a car, providing easy-to-understand visual reports that give the homeowner insight into how their home performs in areas like insulation, air sealing, heating and cooling efficiency, and hot water heating. Each rating comes with a list of recommendations or an improvement plan that helps the homeowner plan upgrades to increase the efficiency, comfort, and value of their home.
Pearl Certification’s home labeling system is one of two systems that will be tested during the pilot. As part of the pilot, Pearl will work with both residential contractors and home inspectors in Staten Island, Tompkins County, and Irondequoit to introduce Pearl Certifications to homeowners. These locations were selected by NYSERDA to evaluate the impact the rating systems will have on consumer awareness and demand for energy efficiency services in different geographic areas.
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Pearl Certification is a national firm that provides third-party certification of high-performing homes: homes with “performance assets” that make them healthy, safe, comfortable, energy and water efficient. Pearl Certification was accepted into the prestigious National Association of Realtors REach Accelerator program in 2017. For more information, visit www.pearlcertification.com.
