VEEP Program Launches with Promising Results!

Recently I was able to catch up with Rebecca Quinn and Tasha Baker, the first landlord and tenant of our VEEP pilot program -- a partnership of C3, LEAP, and the City of Charlottesville’s Redevelopment and Housing Authority (CHRA).

Having grown up during the energy crisis in the 70’s, Rebecca has a natural inclination toward protecting the environment. She calls herself a penny pincher, “I’m one that really took my mom’s advice to ‘Put on a sweater’ to heart!” Those qualities, along with a strong desire to help people, made her a natural fit for the first landlord to take advantage of VEEP.

Rebecca first learned about the program through LEAP, having had an audit on her own home a few years ago, and subsequently decided to attend an informational session co-hosted by C3 and LEAP on the VEEP pilot. 

For the last seven years, she’s owned a 1967 building in Charlottesville, which currently houses two low-income residents. When she heard about the potential for financial support that the VEEP pilot was offering, Rebecca was hopeful. She also knew her furnace was approaching the end of its working life and figured there must be some energy-saving potential there. She had already made water conservation upgrades to the property and understood the financial benefits of efficiency.

At the info session, she struck up a conversation with Claire Habel, who was working as our residential program manager at the time. Rebecca said it was that conversation that really persuaded her to join the program. 

Claire helped her realize that it didn’t make sense to replace an aging gas furnace with a brand-new gas furnace because she would be stuck with a fossil-fuel-dependent appliance for its lifetime – so possibly the next 30+ years. Whereas if she went with an electric furnace, as the electricity grid moved away from fossil fuels and became cleaner over time (as the Virginia electricity grid gets more and more renewable energy), she would be making a positive environmental impact. She said it was then that “a light came on” for her.

So last October, Rebecca began the process with LEAP to get the work done and an agreement with the Charlottesville Redevelopment and Housing Authority (CHRA) to have her future tenants be Charlottesville Housing Voucher holders. 

The first step was to have LEAP conduct an energy assessment on the property and create a list of top recommendations. The upgrades included adding insulation, installing programmable thermostats, and replacing the furnace with a high-efficiency heat pump. The house originally had 4” of insulation (which has an R-value of 12) and by adding 11” of insulation they were able to bring that up to a whopping R-49! The work was completed in February.

Tasha, her tenant is very happy with the upgrades. She said the biggest difference has come from the added insulation, making the home more efficient.  “It’s great,” she told me. “The home is definitely more comfortable. The insulation does a much better job of keeping the cold air from A/C in.” 

It also has helped Tasha to reduce her energy burden. “It was a big change in utility bills for the better.”  Additionally, she said they feel much safer in the home with electricity instead of gas. The upgrades resulted in a dramatic 35% reduction in energy use which amounts to a savings of $350 a year.

A report that C3 recently published highlighted this “energy burden” issue in Charlottesville neighborhoods. The data uncovered that nearly 1 in 4 households in Charlottesville experience high energy burden, meaning they spend more than 6% of their household income on energy costs alone. 

“It makes sense for landlords to keep utility costs down to allow renters to better keep up with the rent,” added Rebecca. “That means less tenant turnover -- another benefit to landlords.” 

At the end of our interview Rebecca said, “I enjoy knowing that I’m doing the right thing and helping these tenants – that social component feels good.”  She also feels that more awareness should be brought to local officials and housing advocates that affordability is not just about rent, but also utility costs.  

If you or someone you know is interested in joining the VEEP landlord incentive pilot program, please contact LEAP at info@leap-va.org.