Green Rental Housing

Overview

Rental units in Ann Arbor account for about 55% of our housing. Many of these units are well built and maintained, providing tenants – from students to life-long Ann Arborites – the ability to live in a comfortable and affordable unit. But this is not always the case. Some buildings and units were built in a time before modern building codes and have not been updated over time, meaning tenants pay more for their energy bills, live in uncomfortable units, and reside in buildings that produce disproportionately more emissions inside and outside of the building, harming their physical and mental health. Therefore, the A²ZERO plan directed OSI to create a Green Rental Housing program to set a minimum baseline of health, comfort, and energy efficiency to ensure our tenants have a place to not just live in, but to thrive in, as we all work towards our carbon neutrality goals.

How does Green Rental Housing Help?

Buildings with air sealing and insulation can reduce harmful air pollutants from entering the unit, maintain more consistent temperatures to reduce the likelihood of illness, and better manage moisture to reduce the likelihood of mold. And units switching from methane gas appliances like furnaces and gas stoves to electric ones such as heat pumps and induction stoves can eliminate indoor pollutants to reduce the risk of respiratory health effects.

Units that are more energy efficient maintain more consistent and comfortable temperatures. They are able to keep the heat out in the summer and the cold out in the winter to ensure inside the unit is at a comfortable level for those inside.

Units that are efficient use less energy, saving on utility bills each month. By keeping out the heat in the summer and cold out in the winter, heating and cooling systems don't have to work as hard, and by having more efficient appliances, we can reduce the amount of energy a unit uses each month to help lower utility bills.

By using less energy, we reduce the amount of greenhouse gas emissions generated by our buildings. In Ann Arbor, buildings account for just under 70% of our emissions, and our housing stock is about 55% rentals. Lowering emissions from rental units helps us work together as a community to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions.

Resources

The Office of Sustainability & Innovations has created resource hubs for both tenants and landlords to continue making Ann Arbor rental housing as safe, healthy, comfortable, and energy efficient as possible.

Landlord Resources

Renter Resources

Proposed Materials

The draft Green Rental Housing policy is a multi-faceted approach created by the task force and the Office of Sustainability and Innovations to standardize market expectations for the quality of rental units and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Each approach centers the health, safety, comfort, and energy efficiency of rentals. To learn more, please view the materials below. Please note, the following materials are not finalized and are still under review.

Checklist Methodology

For more information, read the Green Rental Housing FAQ.

Contact Us

Let us know how we can help you! We have put together a resource hub for tenants and landlords and are continually adding new resources. Send your ideas and suggestions for the types of resources you'd like to see to jlange@a2gov.org.

Contact Info

Joe Lange
Senior Energy Analyst

Email Joe