Drive to Net Zero Home Competition Guidelines

Qualifications:

The home must be built in the service territory of one of the participating utilities (e.g., Eversource, Liberty, New Hampshire Electric Cooperative, Unitil)
The home must participate in the NHSaves® ENERGY STAR® Homes program
- The home will still be eligible for Home Energy Rating services and NH ENERGY STAR Homes incentives
The home must earn the ENERGY STAR Label
The home must be completed and in move in condition by August 30, 2024
The home must be inspected and tested by one of the contracted NHSaves HERS raters during construction and at the completion of home
The home’s renewables must be installed and operation at final inspection to be considered for scoring

Requirements:

The builder and homeowner must be willing to participate in promotional activities including advertising, media events, website profiling, video interviews, publications and a final awards ceremony, among other opportunities
During the building process, the homeowner and builder must agree to occasional inspections, to take photos to support the renewable energy and/or technologies involved (especially those that will be inaccessible at completion), and monitoring and evaluations to ensure compliance with the qualifications of the challenge

Judging Criteria:

The home’s overall HERS Index score (Technical) – HERS rater provided using nationally accredited software
The home’s HERS index prior to renewables technologies (Technical) – HERS rater provided using nationally accredited software
The home’s affordability – cost per square foot of conditioned space, (Technical and will be treated confidentially)
The home’s estimated total annual net operating cost using a nationally accredited software (Technical)
The home’s technological innovation (Judged by a panel)

Awards & Benefits: