Community Retrofit Aggregation & Financing Tool (CRAFT)
A community-scale retrofit delivery and financing framework that clusters projects to cut costs, protect consumers, and coordinate grid impacts.
Overview
Individual, house-by-house retrofits are slow, expensive, and administratively complex. In contrast, street-by-street and neighborhood-scale retrofits reduce costs through economies of scale, simplify contractor logistics, and build social trust.
This policy establishes the Community Retrofit Aggregation & Financing Tool (CRAFT): a delivery and financing framework that enables communities to upgrade buildings collectively while protecting residents from financial and technical risk.
Real-World Examples:
- Energiesprong, Netherlands: The Energiesprong approach pioneered street-by-street deep retrofits using prefabricated facades and roofs, cutting installation time to days and enabling financing through energy savings.
- Bristol, UK: The city’s Retrofit West program aggregates demand across neighborhoods to train local workers and deliver coordinated whole-house retrofits with verified energy savings.
- Belgium: The EnergyHop program combines neighborhood aggregation with standardized technical packages and consumer protection frameworks, reducing retrofit costs by 20-30%.
1. Core Mechanism: Retrofit Aggregators
Legal Form and Authority
A Retrofit Aggregator is a legally constituted entity authorized by the municipality to coordinate retrofit delivery for a defined geographic area.
Aggregators may be:
- Municipal departments or authorities
- Non-profit organizations or cooperatives
- Special-purpose public benefit corporations
Aggregators act as:
- Program administrators, not property owners
- Agents for collective procurement, not mandatory intermediaries
- Coordinators, not utilities or lenders
Aggregators may not:
- Compel participation
- Sign construction contracts on behalf of residents without explicit consent
- Bundle residents into financing without opt-in approval
2. Consumer Protections and Participation Rights
To ensure trust and voluntary participation:
- Participation is opt-in at every stage.
- Expressions of Interest are non-binding.
- Residents may withdraw prior to contract signing with no penalty.
- Each dwelling receives an individual technical assessment.
- Clear dispute resolution and complaints processes must be published.
No household may be denied services or penalized for choosing not to participate.
3. Bulk Buying & Delivery Streams
Retrofits are organized into standardized delivery streams to maximize efficiency.
| Stream | Scope | Benefits |
|---|---|---|
| Thermal Shell | Insulation, air sealing, windows | Reduced heating/cooling demand |
| Mechanical Systems | Heat pumps, HPWHs | Electrification and efficiency |
| Energy Systems | Solar PV, batteries | Peak reduction and resilience |
Aggregators must pre-qualify contractors and cap workload per contractor to maintain quality.
4. Financing Models and Guardrails
CRAFT enables property-linked financing, subject to strict consumer safeguards.
Option A: Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE)
- Financing is attached to the property, not the occupant.
- Maximum interest rate: 2% above sovereign borrowing rate.
- Full disclosure of total repayment cost is mandatory.
Option B: On-Bill Financing (OBF)
- Repayment occurs via utility bills.
- Bill neutrality must be certified using conservative energy savings estimates.
- If savings underperform, payment schedules must be adjusted.
Additional guardrails:
- Predatory financing practices are prohibited.
- Prepayment and transfer terms must be disclosed before enrollment.
- Dispute resolution must be independent of lenders and contractors.
5. Renters, Condos, and Multi-Unit Buildings
CRAFT explicitly includes:
- Rental properties (with tenant protection requirements)
- Condominiums and housing cooperatives
- Small and mid-sized apartment buildings
Measures include:
- Landlord participation conditioned on rent-stabilization or benefit-sharing mechanisms
- Simplified approval pathways for condo boards
- Aggregated financing structures for multi-unit buildings
6. Grid Coordination and Utility Engagement
Aggregators must coordinate with utilities prior to large-scale deployment.
Requirements include:
- Advance notice of clustered load changes
- Coordination of transformer and feeder capacity upgrades
- Optional aggregation of batteries into Virtual Power Plants (VPPs) where permitted
- Data-sharing agreements with clear privacy boundaries
7. Government Support and Risk Reduction
Municipal and regional governments shall provide:
- Seed funding for Aggregator setup and staffing
- Loan guarantees to reduce financing costs
- Standardized procurement and contracting templates
- Workforce training and certification programs
8. Pilot Program: Street-by-Street Retrofit Zones
Selection Criteria
- Housing typology similarity
- High energy burden indicators
- Demonstrated community interest
- Grid readiness or constraint mitigation potential
Pilot Phases
- Outreach and assessments
- Bulk procurement
- Coordinated installation
- Post-install verification and reporting
9. Success Metrics and Reporting
Aggregators must publish annual performance reports including:
- Cost per dwelling retrofitted
- Average energy and emissions reduction
- Participation and opt-out rates
- Financing performance (defaults, delinquencies)
- Contractor quality metrics
Appendix A: CRAFT Retrofit Aggregator Charter Template
1. Purpose
The Aggregator exists to coordinate equitable, affordable, and high-quality building retrofits at community scale.
2. Governance
- Board representation must include community members.
- Conflicts of interest must be disclosed.
- Financial accounts are subject to annual audit.
3. Authority
- Authorized to issue RFPs and manage procurement.
- Authorized to coordinate financing offers.
- Not authorized to compel participation or enforce compliance.
4. Consumer Protections
- Transparent pricing and financing disclosures.
- Opt-out rights at defined milestones.
- Independent complaints and mediation process.
5. Contractor Management
- Pre-qualification and performance monitoring.
- Clear termination procedures for underperformance.
- Worker safety and labor standards compliance.
6. Data and Privacy
- Minimal data collection principle.
- No sale of participant data.
- Compliance with applicable data protection laws.
7. Reporting and Accountability
- Annual public report.
- Open performance metrics.
- Sunset and renewal conditions defined by the municipality.
Benefits Snapshot
| Feature | Individual Approach | CRAFT (Community Bulk) Approach |
|---|---|---|
| Cost | Retail pricing + individual travel/setup. | 20-30% discount via wholesale purchasing and clustered labor. |
| Trust | Homeowner vets contractors alone. | Aggregator vets contractors; community relies on peer trust. |
| Speed | One home at a time; scheduling delays. | Assembly-line delivery; teams move door-to-door. |
| Grid | Random installs strain the grid. | Coordinated batteries can form a Virtual Power Plant (VPP). |
Discussion on GitHub
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