How is hillsboro Enforcing the Home Energy score?

Attention to all homeowners and real estate agents in Hillsboro, Oregon — as of September 1st, 2021 the city of Hillsboro adopted the ordinance no. 6376 Home Energy Score as a requirement for all home sales. Anyone wanting to sell a home in the city of Portland is required to get a home energy score completed by a licensed Home Energy Assessment contractor. This new city wide ordinance matches the same legislation in Portland passed in 2017, and is intended to improve the existing housing stock and reduce residential energy consumption in Hillsboro. The score is an asset based assessment of the current conditions of the home.
The exceptions to the City ordinance are as follows:

1. Building Exemptions
2. Vertically stacked units (condos)
3. Detached ADU's 
4. Mobile homes
5. Buildings used primarily for commercial purposes
6. Selling Exemptions
7. A foreclosure sale,
8. A trustee’s sale,
9. A deed-in-lieu of foreclosure sale, or
10. Any pre-foreclosure sale in which seller has reached an agreement with the mortgage holder to sell the property for an amount less than the amount owed on the mortgage. 
11. Undue Hardship Exemptions
12. The covered building qualifies for sale at public auction or acquisition by a public agency due to arrears for property taxes,
13. A court appointed receiver is in control of the covered building due to financial distress,
14. The senior mortgage on the covered building is subject to a notice of default,
15. The covered building has been approved for participation in Oregon Property Tax Deferral for Disabled and Senior Citizens, or equivalent program as determined by the Director, or
16. The responsible party is otherwise unable to meet the obligations of this Chapter as determined by the Director
17. The low-income qualified seller demonstrates household income is at or below 60 percent of median household income for the Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA Metropolitan Statistical Area,
18. The low-income qualified seller has been approved for participation in Oregon LowIncome Home Energy Assistance Program,
19. The low-income qualified seller has been approved for participation in Free and Reduced Price Meals through Oregon Department of Education, or
20. The low-income qualified seller is otherwise unable to meet the obligations of this Chapter as determined by the Director.

Other Exemptions

1. The Director may provide a waiver from the requirements of this Chapter for homebuilders or sellers using scoring products that are not compliant with Oregon Administrative Rules adopted by Oregon Department of Energy for Oregon’s Home Energy Performance Score Standard. The waiver will allow homebuilders or sellers currently using Energy Performance Scores (EPS) or Home Energy Rating System (HERS) to temporarily continue the use of these asset rating tools. 

Enforcement
Similarly to the City of Portland, Hillsboro will be enforcing this new city ordinance with penalties and fines. All violations will be subject to $500 citation and for every subsequent violation within a 90-day period, another $500.00 penalty will imposed. A written notice will be issued to the responsible party, where the violation is described and steps to become in compliance. The notice sent by the city of Hillsboro will provide 15-days to reach compliance before any fines are issued to the responsible party. To avoid all city of Hillsboro fees, homeowners, brokers, and real estate agents need to schedule a Home Energy Score with a Certified Energy Assessor.
Our quick, professional, and comprehensive services will keep you in compliance with the new city Ordinance.

​Give us a call at (503)-567-5551 or check our our website to learn more!