Check Your Building’s Energy-Efficiency Score

Energy Star scores for 2014, which rate a building’s energy efficiency relative to comparable buildings across the country, have been released for multifamily New York City buildings, including larger co-ops and condos, the Urban Green Council reports.

“We’re finally able to provide information in context,” says Sean Brennan, the nonprofit council’s research manager. “We can now show a building’s Energy Star score and compare it to similar buildings. If you’re using more energy, your board should talk to the super and property manager, and see if there are courses they can take. You might also talk to other co-op boards in the neighborhood and find out what they’re doing to save energy and water.” Boards might also investigate such programs as the city’s Retrofit Accelerator or, for smaller co-ops and condos, Community Retrofit NYC.

Through a database called Metered New York, it’s possible to type in a street address and learn a building’s Energy Star score, which ranges from an inefficient zero to a pristine 100. The score incorporates each building’s location, size and energy usage into the calculation. The city’s median score is 55, which means its buildings are slightly more energy-efficient than the national average. New York’s larger buildings – 50,000 square feet and up – realized 6 percent total energy savings and 8 percent carbon savings from 2010 to 2013.

“What’s interesting is that boards can see what’s happening year to year, how their building trends over time,” says Russell Unger, executive director of the Urban Green Council, the city’s nonprofit affiliate of the U.S. Green Building Council.

“If your super hasn’t gone for training,” he adds, “you’re missing a great opportunity.”