Everything You Need to Know about Smart Regs in Under Two Pages

Boulder has adopted new energy guidelines for rental properties within the City limits. The guidelines are intended to reduce the many thousands of tons of carbon in the atmosphere generated by Boulder’s rental inventory by requiring rental property owners to comply with new energy savings that will reduce the energy consumption in their rental properties.  The Boulder City Council approved the new inspection criteria, which became effective January 3, 2011 and it will continue until January 2019 when 100% of the City’s rental inventory must comply with the new Smart Regs inspection criteria. 

If a rental property doesn’t have the Smart Regs Certificate by January 2019, then the owner will not be issued a City of Boulder Rental License on the next “renewal” date of the license and the owner cannot legally rent the respective Boulder rental property.  It’s that simple.

Smart Regs is a separate inspection from the Boulder Rental License Inspection that every rental property and owner must have every four years.  Every rental property must have a current rental license beginning with a “new” or “Baseline Inspection” and it must be renewed every four years by a “Renewal Inspection” and then a license is reissued for another four years.  There are significant penalties for not having a current or active Rental License, which includes fines and jail time if awarded by a judge.  If you rent your property to non-relatives, you don’t live in the property and you don’t have a Rental License, then you could be subject to these penalties!

There are two different types of Smart Regs Inspections and the rental property owner must choose one type and qualify with the minimum number of required points. The two types are: the Performance Inspection that requires a minimum of 120 points (used more often for a construction Building Permit) and the Prescriptive Inspection that requires a minimum of 100 points.  Points are given for specific types of energy saving features in the rental property. 

In 2011, less than 3,000 Smart Regs inspections had been completed…...out of about 23,000 properties or rental “doors”.

An example of “points” is Ceilings (the attic):  No Insulation = 0 points, R-19 (about 6” of fiberglass insulation) = 24 points, R-38 or higher (more than about 12” of fiberglass insulation) = 26 points.  If you have a lower level condo with a “shared” ceiling, then you get 27 points (because there’s essentially no heat loss and the condo above benefits from the heat of the condo below). Energy Smart appliances are worth points too!

Heating (example of points).  If your furnace is less the 75% efficient (AFUE = 75%) then you get 0 points.  If  80% efficient = 13 points. If 90% efficient = 17 points.  If 96% efficient = 19 points.  Other categories that are awarded “points” are lighting (CFL’s and fluorescents up to 7 points), energy efficient water heaters and refrigerators, programmable thermostats, thickness of wall insulation, types of windows (single pane or double insulated glass), insulation in a crawl space or below the lowest floor, amount of solar panels, whole house fans, type of cooling, etc., etc.  The Smart Regs Inspector adds up your “points” and if you achieve the minimum required, then you “Pass” and you will be awarded a Certificate by the City of Boulder for passing Smart Regs. (No charge for this Certificate.) Your property only has to “Pass” the Smart Regs Inspection once.  If you have passed the inspection, your property never has to qualify again and the Certificate is transferable to the new owner if you sell your property!

Inspection fees vary from Inspector to Inspector.  There are only five (5) licensed Rental License Inspectors who can do “all 3 parts of the rental inspection” and there are over ten (10) licensed Smart Regs Inspectors. Roberts & Sons can do both inspections.  Smart Regs inspection fees can range from $200 to over $400 for the Performance Inspection (120 points needed). The Prescriptive Inspection (100 points needed) is usually under $200 for a home, condo or townhome; larger units are slightly more. 

Roberts & Sons.  The author does the Prescriptive type (100 points) Smart Regs Inspection.    When a Boulder Rental License inspection is required, the author can do either the Baseline (or the Renewal) Inspection at the same time as the Smart Regs Inspection.  We never charge for reinspections if you have to fix something and we don’t charge for travel (many Inspectors don’t live in Boulder).

$$$$$$$$$$$     RECOMMENDATION……..1. Do your Smart Regs Inspection now and find out how many “points” you have for at least one of your properties and accompany me during the inspection and save $ or  2. When you do your next rental property Renewal Inspection….sometime over the next four (4) year cycle….schedule the Smart Regs Inspection at the same time and save $.   

You can schedule a Boulder Rental License Inspection (Baseline or Renewal) or a Smart Regs Inspection by calling Roberts & Sons at (303) 581-9937 ext 3  (Jeanne)

We do the Prescriptive type of inspection as do most Smart Regs Inspectors. A Blower Door type test is not required for the Prescriptive Inspection.  If you’d like FREE water saving shower heads and CFL’s, I can tell you how to get them during your inspection!

For more information, go to www.bouldercolorado.gov