What is the Segmentation Opportunity in Your City?
Segmentation analysis is a complex but valuable tool to understanding a city’s housing stock. Case in point: Elevate Energy’s analysis drew from 13 disparate data sources to create a composite representation of the multifamily market. While Elevate Energy’s analysis focused exclusively on the Chicago area, many of the results and recommendations may be replicable and relevant to program designs in other geographies.
The unsubsidized lower-cost multifamily market needs tailored efficiency programs. In a given geography, market segmentation can reveal the most prevalent multifamily market segments and distinct retrofit approaches. Outreach should be targeted to low-income areas with a high concentration of key segments. Lastly, there is a significant opportunity to improve collaboration with other disciplines and utilities.
There are tools to help building owners and facility executives get started. As part of its segmentation analysis, Elevate Energy developed a companion “how-to” framework to help researchers in other cities complete their own segmentation analysis. It includes tips, like how to understand privacy for energy and housing data, how to engage experts outside of the field and how to assess affordability in different markets. A detailed description of the methods for constructing the database of buildings can also be found in Cityscape, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s journal on housing and community development issues.
Other cities have undertaken multifamily segmentation analyses. For example, Building Energy Exchange in New York completed a segmentation analysis of different aspects of the multifamily market in New York City and added energy-use data to understand the energy-efficiency opportunity. A segmentation analysis of the Los Angeles multifamily market also will be available in 2018.
As for Chadha, the 2016 upgrades to her building included roof cavity air sealing and insulation, domestic hot water heater replacement, steam boiler replacement and steam-pipe insulation. The improvements are expected to save 40 percent annually on natural gas costs.
“Elevate went well above and beyond any support that we could have anticipated,” Chadha says. “We’re confident that our building is now operating efficiently.”
Most importantly, her building is now more stable and viable, which serves as a beacon of quality, affordable housing in a neighborhood traditionally plagued with disinvestment.
More Information
- Energy Efficiency For All Initiative
- Elevate Energy, “Segmenting Chicago Multifamily Housing to Improve Energy Efficiency Programs”
- Elevate Energy, “Making Sense of Your Multifamily Housing Stock”
- Cityscape, “Chicago Multifamily Market Characterization: Developing a Comprehensive Picture of the Multifamily Housing Landscape”
- Building Energy Exchange, “Retrofitting Affordability: Evaluating New York City’s Multifamily Building Energy Data for Savings Opportunities”
Retrofit Conference
This article is based on a presentation that was given at retrofit’s inaugural conference, which was held in Chicago in October 2017. Download Loewen’s presentation and learn about retrofit’s second annual conference to be held in Charlotte, N.C., Oct. 9, 2018.
Images: Elevate Energy