Existing Home Application & Overview

2011 EVHA Application for Existing Homes

The 2011 EVHA Existing Home Application is available for download in Word format.

Application Deadline: Postmarked by Friday, July 30, 2010.

The EnergyValue Housing Award Existing Home competition is designed to recognize builders and remodelers who successfully integrate energy efficiency improvements into the retrofit of existing structures. Through educational programs and national media coverage, the award promotes an increased awareness of the value of energy efficiency improvements in existing homes among builders/remodelers, homeowners, and others.

There are nearly 130 million existing homes in the US many of which are in need of significant improvements to reduce residential energy consumption. The challenge faced by homeowners and builder/remodelers is prioritizing improvements so that the family needs are met logically and within budget.

The NAHB Research Center, U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), and the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), invite you to enter the 1st Annual EnergyValue Housing Award (EVHA) Existing Home competition.

BENEFITS OF APPLYING

• Winners are recognized with an award at the 2011 EnergyValue Housing Award Banquet during the 2011 International Builders Show held January 12-14, 2011, in Orlando, Florida.
• Each applicant can request up to TWO (2) complimentary tickets to the 2011 EVHA Banquet.
• Each applicant will receive a summary of the judges' scores and comments that are intended to help the builder/remodeler improve building, business, and customer service practices.
• Selected winners are featured on the U.S. Department of Energy's Building America website, NAHB's Nation's Building News, the NAHB Research Center website, the 2011 EVHA Winner Magazine, and other selected national publications.
• Winners receive EVHA award logos and customized press releases for local promotion and marketing.
• Selected winners may be invited to share their success stories at workshops, educational programs, or conferences.

ELIGIBILITY

• All U.S. home builders and remodelers whose primary occupation is constructing and/or remodeling homes are eligible for participation. Applicants need not be members of the NAHB or a local home builders association.
• Submitted existing home projects must have been completed after January 31, 2008, and before application submittal. All submissions must have an emphasis on energy savings.
• Existing home projects with additions of less than 75% of the existing building or dwelling unit's conditioned floor area (as defined in the ICC 700-2008 National Green Building Standard Section 305.1[2]) are eligible for entry in the Existing Home category.
• Projects that include additions larger than 75% of the existing building or dwelling unit's conditioned floor area will be considered new construction and should be submitted in the appropriate EVHA New Home category using the New Home Application.

APPLICANT RESPONSIBILITIES

Applicants must be willing to share information with other builders/remodelers through various media and NAHB Research Center workshops, presentations, and publications. Exceptions include proprietary information that must be clearly identified on application materials.

CATEGORIES

The Existing Home Award has been divided into categories to allow builders/remodelers to submit a variety of existing residences for consideration. For all categories, builders/remodelers should demonstrate the integration of energy efficiency into their general design, construction, and marketing practices. Application information must be submitted for one specific home. The award categories are as follows:

• Single Family Existing Home: For the EVHA program, a single family existing home is an existing one- or two-family dwelling or multiple single-family dwellings (townhouses) not more than 3 stories in height with separate mean of egress.
• Multifamily Existing Building: For the EVHA program, a multifamily existing building is one that is built under the Internationa Building Code (IBC) or equivalent that is 3 stories or less.
• Reconstruction: Reconstruction Projects, often referred to as a "gut rehab", are complete renovation projects that remove most or all of the interior finishes, mechanical systems, and lighting and appliances. Structural modifications and/or additions however, may or may not be part of a reconstruction project. These projects are expected to be able to be brought up to at least the minimum requirements of the local current building and energy codes as all of the structure is available for renovation. Most often, reconstruction projects will be performed without occupancy. For the EVHA program, reconstruction projects that fit this description should be entered in the Reconstruction category.

CLIMATE REGIONS

For each category, winners are chosen from within the following climate regions:

• Cold Climate - Heating Degree Days (HDD) greater than 5,500.
• Moderate Climate - 3,000 to 5,500 HDD or HDD less than 3,000 and CDD less than 2,000.
• Hot Climate - HDD less than 3,000 and CDD greater than 2,000.

The HDD (base 65° F) and CDD (base 65° F) for your nearest major city can be found in Annual Degree Days to Selected Bases 1971-2000, published by the U.S. Department of Commerce.

NAHB Research Center staff will review each application's category and climate region to ensure that the application was submitted in the most appropriate category and climate region. The applicant will be contacted if the category or climate region is to be changed.

EVHA EXISTING HOME BUILDER/REMODELER OF THE YEAR

Judges will choose one overall winner from the Existing Home Gold Winners who best represents energy value and the goals of the award program.

JUDGING

Judging will be based on the evaluation of criteria essential to the value of energy efficiency as it was considered and implemented throughout the remodel of the structure. Remodeling project(s) submitted will be evaluated based on the entire home no matter the extent of the remodel. Applications will be measured relative to other applicants within a specific climate region. Note that a HERS index of the final residence (without PV production) is required of all projects submitted.

Applications will be grouped by climate region and by single family versus multifamily (e.g., single family homes in the Hot climate region are judged together; multifamily homes in the Cold climate region are judged together).

Awards may be given according to the following table:

Category	Climate
	Cold	Moderate	Hot
Single Family Existing Home	Gold winner Silver winner	Gold winner Silver winner	Gold winner Silver winner
Multifamily Existing Building	Gold winner Silver winner	Gold winner Silver winner	Gold winner Silver winner
Reconstruction	Gold winner Silver winner	Gold winner Silver winner	Gold winner Silver winner

Winners may also be evaluated on their whole house energy performance by an energy analysis conducted by the NAHB Research Center. The energy analysis follows U.S. DOE Building America’s performance analysis procedures (PDF).

A panel of energy-efficiency experts representing the disciplines of engineering, construction, design, and/or marketing will judge each entry. Judges will consider all available information to determine winners. Judges' decisions are final.

Based on the sole discretion of the judges, awards will be made in categories and climate regions in which there are qualified applicants. Numbers of Gold or Silver winners are not limited and are solely decided by the judging panel. If you have any questions about the different categories or climate regions, please contact the EVHA program coordinator, Debra Sagan, at (800) 638-8556 x6210.

JUDGING CRITERIA

Applications for both single-family and multi-family entries will be evaluated by the criteria below.

Evaluation Criteria	Weight of Scores
	Single Family & Multifamily	Reconstruction*
Application Completeness: This criterion examines whether all required materials are submitted and whether all referenced supporting documents are furnished.	5%	5%
Energy Value: This criterion examines what makes the home more energy efficient than code requirements or other homes in the local market.	33%	48%
Design: This criterion examines how energy efficiency is considered during the design process.	21%	21%
Construction: This criterion examines management methods and construction processes related to energy and resource efficiency.	20%	13%
Marketing & Customer Relations: This criterion examines how energy efficiency is incorporated into marketing, customer relations and customer education efforts; presentation of energy efficiency financing opportunities; the use of incentives and rebates to promote energy efficiency.	15%	7%
Energy/Green Building Programs: This criterion documents the certification of the EVHA entered home in energy/green programs, such Home Performance with ENERGY STAR, ENERGYSTAR, Builders Challenge, Local and National Green building programs, etc.	6%	6%

*Note: Homes in the Reconstruction category are weighted differently than homes in other categories; less emphasis is placed on Marketing and Customer Relations, while more emphasis is placed on Energy Performance.

INSTRUCTIONS

The official application form must be downloaded from the EVHA website at www.nahbrc.com/evha/existinghome. It is recommended that a working paper copy of the application be completed and all REQUIRED documentation compiled prior to completing the electronic application. Please verify that all REQUIRED information is properly entered into the form and that all documentation has been collected and properly labeled.

The completed application must be submitted via email to: evha@nahbrc.com. Please print a copy for your records and three copies as requested below. You may request a copy of the application via email from: dsagan@nahbrc.com or phone (800) 638-8556 x6210.

To enter, complete the 2011 EVHA Existing Home Application Form by responding to each judging criteria. Please write or type your answers in the application form where expandable boxes are provided. Please note that character limits apply in most boxes.

Responses to judging criteria should be relevant, accurate, and concise. Responses should describe practices while demonstrating an understanding of energy efficiency.

• Submit three (3) hard copies of each application.
• Submit one (1) electronic copy of the completed application form to evha@nahbrc.com. You will receive an application number for each entry.
• Submit one (1) signed copy of the Disclosure Statement for each application.
• Submit one (1) copy of the checklist for each application.
• Submit an application fee of $100 for each entry.
  Make checks payable to the NAHB Research Center.

Applications and supporting materials should be presented neatly. REQUIRED documents are necessary for judging. Failure to submit required documents will result in a loss of up to 5 points for incompleteness. Applicants should decide if they want to submit OPTIONAL materials. Clearly indicate where all supporting information may be found in the application package (e.g., use appendices or tabbed dividers, and reference them in the application text). Sections should be clearly separated and labeled (inserted labels have a tendency to drop out of the tabs in transit). Use of CD’s or flash drives is encouraged to minimize the size of the paper applications.

Use photographs, drawings, product literature, and other supporting material to describe features and details when possible. Please use original materials whenever possible. Photographs submitted with the application are subject to use in media; therefore, higher resolution photos (300 dpi or more) are preferred. Please caption photos whenever possible and identify any persons in the pictures.

Video files and informational CDs may be included. Energy efficiency features shown in photos should be clearly captioned.

ENTRY DEADLINE

Application forms must be submitted electronically via email no later than midnight eastern time, Friday, July 30, 2010.

Complete Entry packets including supporting materials must be postmarked by July 30, 2010 and received no later than Friday, August 2, 2010.

A company may submit only one entry in each climate region. Entry materials are non-returnable and fees are non-refundable.

Please address inquiries and submissions to:

Debra Sagan, EVHA Program Manager
NAHB Research Center, Inc.
400 Prince George's Boulevard
Upper Marlboro, MD 20774-8731
tel. (301) 430-6210 or (800) 638-8556 x6210
fax. (301) 430-6180
Contact via e-mail

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