The Departments of Housing and Urban Development and Agriculture on Tuesday repealed a Biden administration policy that would require federally-backed mortgages to adhere to updated energy efficiency codes, requirements that homebuilders claimed add more than $20,000 to the cost of homes.
In 2024, the Biden administration finalized a rule requiring all new construction homes to use the most up-to-date 2021 energy efficiency codes in order to qualify for federal loans from HUD and USDA.
Recommended Stories
The administration at the time said the stricter codes would apply to about one-sixth of all homes built each year, and would yield savings for homeowners over time of about 35%.
HUD noted that the Trump administration has since delayed the compliance data for the 2024 rule. The agency last year also issued a request for comment from stakeholders on the Biden administration’s standard.
The department claims that enforcing the Biden administration standards could result in an increase in home construction costs from $20,000 to $31,000, citing figures provided by the industry. It added that it would decrease new home production and lengthen permitting and inspection timelines.
“The Trump administration’s focus is to facilitate new housing supply and ensure that every American family has a path to homeownership without being sidelined by bureaucratic red tape,” HUD Secretary Scott Turner said in a statement.
The added requirements in the 2021 code include increased insulation on ceilings and walls, added rules for lighting, and, in some cases, adding heat-recovery ventilators or energy-recovery ventilators, among others.
TRUMP WITHDRAWS NOMINEE TO LEAD NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
Bill Owens, chairman of the National Association of Home Builders, praised the move.
“Compliance with the rule would have placed significant new cost pressures on home builders and multifamily developers, making it harder to deliver the affordable, attainable communities that are urgently needed,” Owens said.
