IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/appene/v323y2022ics0306261922008698.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

A comparison of building system parameters between affordable and market-rate housing in New York City

Author

Listed:
  • Pennell, Grace
  • Newman, Sarah
  • Tarekegne, Bethel
  • Boff, Daniel
  • Fowler, Richard
  • Gonzalez, Juan

Abstract

Low-income households in the United States experience higher than average energy burdens (defined as the proportion of household income spent on energy utilities), and many of these households struggle to simultaneously pay for rent, energy, and basic household necessities. The analysis presented here examines whether the underlying characteristics of buildings and their energy systems could contribute to this disparity for affordable housing residents in New York City. It combines an energy audit dataset of 7,328 multifamily buildings with a database of properties receiving local, state, or federal housing subsidies. The results of this analysis indicate that the building-level installed equipment in large (greater than 50,000 square feet) affordable housing buildings in New York City is more efficient than that in market-rate buildings, but this trend largely disappears when considering overall building characteristics, such as location, size, or age. Significant differences in the types of systems installed in affordable and market-rate housing are also observed, as well as the types of energy efficiency recommendations made by energy auditors. However, these latter data were not normalized by building system characteristics, as that analysis is much more difficult to interpret for categorical data such as heating system type. These findings indicate that retrofit policies and building performance standards focused on affordable housing will likely need to account for underlying differences in building characteristics between affordable and market-rate housing to achieve intended impacts.

Suggested Citation

  • Pennell, Grace & Newman, Sarah & Tarekegne, Bethel & Boff, Daniel & Fowler, Richard & Gonzalez, Juan, 2022. "A comparison of building system parameters between affordable and market-rate housing in New York City," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 323(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:appene:v:323:y:2022:i:c:s0306261922008698
    DOI: 10.1016/j.apenergy.2022.119557
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0306261922008698
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.apenergy.2022.119557?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Reames, Tony G. & Reiner, Michael A. & Stacey, M. Ben, 2018. "An incandescent truth: Disparities in energy-efficient lighting availability and prices in an urban U.S. county," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 218(C), pages 95-103.
    2. Lucas W. Davis, 2011. "Evaluating the Slow Adoption of Energy Efficient Investments: Are Renters Less Likely to Have Energy Efficient Appliances?," NBER Chapters, in: The Design and Implementation of US Climate Policy, pages 301-316, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    3. Bhattacharya, J. & DeLeire, T. & Haider, S. & Currie, J., 2003. "Heat or Eat? Cold-Weather Shocks and Nutrition in Poor American Families," American Journal of Public Health, American Public Health Association, vol. 93(7), pages 1149-1154.
    4. Angel Hsu & Glenn Sheriff & Tirthankar Chakraborty & Diego Manya, 2021. "Disproportionate exposure to urban heat island intensity across major US cities," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 12(1), pages 1-11, December.
    5. Constantine E. Kontokosta & Vincent J. Reina & Bartosz Bonczak, 2020. "Energy Cost Burdens for Low-Income and Minority Households," Journal of the American Planning Association, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 86(1), pages 89-105, January.
    6. Bird, Stephen & Hernández, Diana, 2012. "Policy options for the split incentive: Increasing energy efficiency for low-income renters," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 48(C), pages 506-514.
    7. Jackson Voelkel & Dana Hellman & Ryu Sakuma & Vivek Shandas, 2018. "Assessing Vulnerability to Urban Heat: A Study of Disproportionate Heat Exposure and Access to Refuge by Socio-Demographic Status in Portland, Oregon," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 15(4), pages 1-14, March.
    8. Dominic J. Bednar & Tony G. Reames, 2020. "Recognition of and response to energy poverty in the United States," Nature Energy, Nature, vol. 5(6), pages 432-439, June.
    9. Constantine E. Kontokosta & Danielle Spiegel-Feld & Sokratis Papadopoulos, 2020. "The impact of mandatory energy audits on building energy use," Nature Energy, Nature, vol. 5(4), pages 309-316, April.
    10. Li, Xiaoma & Zhou, Yuyu & Yu, Sha & Jia, Gensuo & Li, Huidong & Li, Wenliang, 2019. "Urban heat island impacts on building energy consumption: A review of approaches and findings," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 174(C), pages 407-419.
    11. Reina, Vincent J. & Kontokosta, Constantine, 2017. "Low hanging fruit? Regulations and energy efficiency in subsidized multifamily housing," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 106(C), pages 505-513.
    12. Xu, Xiaojing & Chen, Chien-fei, 2019. "Energy efficiency and energy justice for U.S. low-income households: An analysis of multifaceted challenges and potential," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 128(C), pages 763-774.
    13. Angel Hsu & Glenn Sheriff & Tirthankar Chakraborty & Diego Manya, 2021. "Publisher Correction: Disproportionate exposure to urban heat island intensity across major US cities," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 12(1), pages 1-1, December.
    14. Teller-Elsberg, Jonathan & Sovacool, Benjamin & Smith, Taylor & Laine, Emily, 2016. "Fuel poverty, excess winter deaths, and energy costs in Vermont: Burdensome for whom?," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 90(C), pages 81-91.
    15. Reames, Tony Gerard, 2016. "Targeting energy justice: Exploring spatial, racial/ethnic and socioeconomic disparities in urban residential heating energy efficiency," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 97(C), pages 549-558.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Luiz Paulo P. Silva & Mohammad K. Najjar & Bruno B. F. da Costa & Mayara Amario & Diego A. Vasco & Assed N. Haddad, 2024. "Sustainable Affordable Housing: State-of-the-Art and Future Perspectives," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(10), pages 1-21, May.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Jones, Andrew & Nock, Destenie & Samaras, Constantine & Qiu, Yueming (Lucy) & Xing, Bo, 2023. "Climate change impacts on future residential electricity consumption and energy burden: A case study in Phoenix, Arizona," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 183(C).
    2. Buylova, Alexandra, 2020. "Spotlight on energy efficiency in Oregon: Investigating dynamics between energy use and socio-demographic characteristics in spatial modeling of residential energy consumption," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 140(C).
    3. Sadie M. Witt & Shelby Stults & Emma Rieves & Kevin Emerson & Daniel L. Mendoza, 2019. "Findings from a Pilot Light-Emitting Diode (LED) Bulb Exchange Program at a Neighborhood Scale," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(14), pages 1-25, July.
    4. Heleno, Miguel & Sigrin, Benjamin & Popovich, Natalie & Heeter, Jenny & Jain Figueroa, Anjuli & Reiner, Michael & Reames, Tony, 2022. "Optimizing equity in energy policy interventions: A quantitative decision-support framework for energy justice," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 325(C).
    5. Claire Conzelmann & Jeremy Hoffman & Toan Phan & Arianna Salazar-Miranda, 2022. "Long-term Effects of Redlining on Environmental Risk Exposure," Working Paper 22-09R, Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond.
    6. Excell, Lauren E. & Jain, Rishee K., 2024. "Examining the impact of energy efficiency retrofits and vegetation on energy performance of institutional buildings: An equity-driven analysis," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 357(C).
    7. Chen, Chien-fei & Xu, Xiaojing & Adua, Lazarus & Briggs, Morgan & Nelson, Hannah, 2022. "Exploring the factors that influence energy use intensity across low-, middle-, and high-income households in the United States," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 168(C).
    8. Ashbaugh, Melissa & Kittner, Noah, 2024. "Addressing extreme urban heat and energy vulnerability of renters in Portland, OR with resilient household energy policies," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 190(C).
    9. Baik, Sosung & Hines, Jeffrey F. & Sim, Jaeung, 2023. "Racial disparities in the energy burden beyond socio-economic inequality," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 127(PA).
    10. Noa Levin, 2023. "Book review essay: City, Climate and Architecture; Coping with Urban Climates," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 60(13), pages 2725-2730, October.
    11. Wan Ting Katty Huang & Pierre Masselot & Elie Bou-Zeid & Simone Fatichi & Athanasios Paschalis & Ting Sun & Antonio Gasparrini & Gabriele Manoli, 2023. "Economic valuation of temperature-related mortality attributed to urban heat islands in European cities," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 14(1), pages 1-12, December.
    12. Best, Rohan & Sinha, Kompal, 2021. "Fuel poverty policy: Go big or go home insulation," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 97(C).
    13. Petrov, Ivan & Ryan, Lisa, 2021. "The landlord-tenant problem and energy efficiency in the residential rental market," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 157(C).
    14. Semple, Torran & Rodrigues, Lucelia & Harvey, John & Figueredo, Grazziela & Nica-Avram, Georgiana & Gillott, Mark & Milligan, Gregor & Goulding, James, 2024. "An empirical critique of the low income low energy efficiency approach to measuring fuel poverty," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 186(C).
    15. Charlier, Dorothée, 2015. "Energy efficiency investments in the context of split incentives among French households," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 87(C), pages 465-479.
    16. Sánchez-Guevara Sánchez, Carmen & Sanz Fernández, Ana & Núñez Peiró, Miguel & Gómez Muñoz, Gloria, 2020. "Energy poverty in Madrid: Data exploitation at the city and district level," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 144(C).
    17. Ivan Rudik & Derek Lemoine & Antonia Marcheva, 2024. "Equity and Efficiency in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law’s Adaptation Investments," NBER Chapters, in: Environmental and Energy Policy and the Economy, volume 6, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    18. Luke J. Harrington & Kristie L. Ebi & David J. Frame & Friederike E. L. Otto, 2022. "Integrating attribution with adaptation for unprecedented future heatwaves," Climatic Change, Springer, vol. 172(1), pages 1-7, May.
    19. C. Grislain-Letremy & J. Sixou & A. Sotura, 2024. "Urban Heat Islands and Inequalities: Evidence from French Cities," Documents de Travail de l'Insee - INSEE Working Papers 2024-21, Institut National de la Statistique et des Etudes Economiques.
    20. Graff, Michelle & Pirog, Maureen, 2019. "Red tape is not so hot: Asset tests impact participation in the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 129(C), pages 749-764.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:appene:v:323:y:2022:i:c:s0306261922008698. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/journaldescription.cws_home/405891/description#description .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.