Making Europe more energy-efficient one home at a time
The bulk of Europe’s building stock is old and thus energy-inefficient. A case in point is Spain’s Extremadura region. According to the EU-funded HousEEnvest project, most of the single-family homes and condominiums in the region were built before 1980. As a result, they tend to lack proper insulation. “While these older homes can be made energy-efficient through renovation, many homeowners are reluctant to do so due to the perceived costs and the hassle of coordinating the work,” says Francisco Javier Márquez Pocostales, project coordinator at the Extremadura Energy Agency (AGENEX) Consortium, the HousEEnvest project’s lead partner.
A one-stop shop
To help increase the number of renovations in Extremadura that improve the energy efficiency of homes, the HousEEnvest project established what is called a one-stop shop. “One-stop shops provide homeowners with all the information, resources and support they need to conduct an energy efficiency home renovation,” explains Márquez. The HousEEnvest one-stop shop assists homeowners with everything from conducting an initial assessment to finding and working with contractors. It can also provide technical assistance and, after the renovation is completed, help monitor the energy savings achieved. “By simplifying the often complex and intimidating renovation process, the one-stop shop concept helps bridge the gap between being interested in a home renovation and actually doing it,” adds Márquez.
Financing for energy efficiency renovations
One-stop shops also help homeowners secure the financing they need to pay for renovations. For the HousEEnvest project, that financial support comes through the guarantee fund for energy efficiency of housing in Extremadura (GEEVE Fund). “This is undoubtedly the project’s main objective and its most important result,” remarks Márquez. The fund offers a public guarantee on the loans offered by private financial entities to pay for energy efficiency home renovations. The financial entities give loans to the homeowners or their associations to pay for renovation works, while the regional government provides a guarantee to the financial entity. “This set-up allows owners to renovate their homes under better financial conditions than what is currently available on the market,” explains Márquez. Although public housing providers cannot apply for GEEVE funding, Márquez notes that they can take advantage of the one-stop shop’s suite of services.
Ensuring continuity into the future
Even though HousEEnvest has finished, the project’s partners have committed to continuing their work. Financial and technical advice for private homeowners is now provided by the Professional Associations of Architects and Engineers. Further financial and technical advice for public building owners (including public housing providers), private homeowners and their associations is provided by AGENEX. “By ensuring continuity in everything achieved by the HousEEnvest project, we guarantee that homeowners will continue to benefit from the one-stop shop concept,” says Márquez. The project has published best practices and lessons learned that other entities can use to launch their own initiatives. These are available in Spanish and English, with summaries available in French, Italian, Polish and German.
Raising awareness of making buildings more energy-efficient
Over 300 condominiums and 50 single-family homes have benefited from the HousEEnvest one-stop shop, with 80 buildings having started the renovation process by the close of the project. However, the project has done more than only increase the number of home renovations happening in Extremadura, it also raised awareness of the need to make buildings more energy-efficient. “If Europe is to achieve its ambitious goal of becoming the first climate-neutral continent, it must improve the efficiency of its building stock – and that starts with renovations,” concludes Márquez.
Keywords
HousEEnvest, home renovation, one-stop shop, energy consumption, buildings, energy efficiency, building stock, homeowners
