America' existing housing stock offers tremendous opportunities for energy savings. However, capturing this savings potential within the established structure of the home improvement market has proven to be quite a challenge. Homeowners face a daunting array of decisions and competing priorities when investing in home improvements. The sheer diversity of specialized contractors and trades offering home improvement services can overwhelm homeowners seeking to improve the aesthetics, comfort, value, and performance of their homes.

Building on a strong base of research documenting the key problems afflicting existing homes and the most promising solutions, program implementers have launched innovative programs to promote energy efficiency improvements in existing homes. Key to these efforts is attracting and educating forward-thinking contractors seeking new business models that improve sales closure rates, increase the average job size, and enhance the services they offer to their customers.

This report briefly describes some current and recent residential retrofit programs; discusses the successes, challenges, and lessons learned to date; presents promising new tools, resources, and program strategies; and identifies areas for further research and inquiry. The research is designed to support efforts by program designers, implenters, and other decision makers to develop or improve residential retrofit program offerings.

View the entire report for free in PDF or click to order hard copy.

26 pp., 2003, $16.00, A038