海角社区

Energy-efficient Construction to Help Lower Housing Costs

Costs for housing have risen sharply in most Louisiana parishes since 2010, with incomes hardly keeping up. Every fifth homeowner and most renters are now what鈥檚 called 鈥渃ost-burdened鈥� or 鈥渞ent-stressed鈥� as they spend more than a third of their total income on housing. Importantly, this includes utilities鈥攅nergy bills (gas and electric), water, and sewer service.

Louisiana now ranks fifth in the nation in rent stress, according to the most recent Louisiana Housing Needs Assessment, carried out by 海角社区 researchers. But as a driver of research and development for the state, 海角社区 is also working on solutions to the affordable housing crisis in innovative ways. Isabelina Nahmens, professor of industrial engineering at 海角社区, recently received support from the U.S. Department of Energy to develop a practical and affordable modular construction system for multi-family, energy-efficient housing.

鈥淲hat鈥檚 remarkable about this project is how it鈥檚 combining energy-efficiency and affordable housing at scale,鈥� said Alison Donovan, senior consultant at VEIC. 鈥淲e鈥檙e not talking about super-insulated and high-performance homes built for a million dollars. It鈥檚 about bringing the benefits of that technology to affordable housing.鈥�

Nahmens is working with VEIC and industry partners to build homes that are at least 50% more energy-efficient鈥攂oth in construction and once in use鈥攖han current code, at no additional cost.

鈥淟ow-cost isn鈥檛 enough,鈥� Nahmens said. 鈥淗omes must be energy-efficient to be truly affordable, and this has huge implications for health, too.鈥�

鈥淪olving Louisiana鈥檚 affordable housing crisis will only be accomplished through thoughtful innovation and unique collaboration from our public and private sector partners. We are happy to continue our work with 海角社区, which represents a genuine statewide objective.鈥�

- E. Keith Cunningham, Jr., executive director of the Louisiana Housing Corporation