As of January 1st, 2018, the City of Portland’s Home Energy Score Program will officially take effect. Portland has a goal to reduce their carbon footprint, and this new energy score is a big step toward that.Under this program, home sellers will be required to hire an assessor to come to their home, assess its energy efficiency, and have them award a score based on the home’s efficiency. Studies show that 79% of buyers want to know this information, so disclosure is key.The report will give your home a rating of one to 10. We like to think of this rating as a “miles per gallon” for your house—a lot of nice cars with low miles per gallon are selling for great prices. This program is beneficial to homeowners in that these reports can notify them of money-saving home improvements and give them the opportunity to recoup the investments they make in any energy efficiency upgrades at the time of sale.“Think of this rating as a ‘miles per gallon’ for your home.”This program offers a few benefits to buyers, as well, including:Better insight into the full costs of owning or renting a home.The ability to compare energy costs and performance between homes.The knowledge of potential home improvements in advance of purchase.Access to additional mortgage products.If you’re a seller and you want to get your home’s official energy score, there are three steps you must take:Hire a professional assessor and get your rating.Provide the official report to your agent/buyer.Confirm all listings of your house show that number.If you’re a seller and you want to bypass this program, you still have time to sell, so don’t wait to get in touch with us so we can help you with that. If you have any other questions, just give us a call or send us an email. We’d be glad to help you.