Our expertise · Green Building & Affordable Housing
DOE Efficient New Homes Support
Plan the higher-performance home before the first wall goes up.
DOE Efficient New Homes, the program formerly called DOE Zero Energy Ready Home or ZERH, recognizes new homes built to a higher performance level, and a home earns it through prerequisite requirements, related certifications, design measures, technical documentation and verification rather than a label added at closeout. The program version and pathway documents, not the name, decide what a given project must do. Builders, developers and housing organizations pursue it when they want the performance itself and the documentation that proves it. Green Summit supports DOE Efficient New Homes projects with technical coordination, energy analysis and verification planning as a RESNET Rating Provider and licensed engineering firm, and we establish the exact requirements and the certification authority for your pathway before any work is represented as certification.
- RESNET Rating Provider No. 1998-221
- Licensed engineering firm
- Founded 2014
- Audit-ready documentation
Who this is for
Builders, developers and design teams delivering new homes, affordable-housing and Tribal housing programs, and the raters who verify high-performance homes.
What we do
- Establish program applicability. We review the housing type, the location, the program version and the project's commitments, and we tell you which program documents govern the project.
- Coordinate prerequisite requirements. We identify the related certifications, design measures and technical documentation the pathway requires and assign each to the right party.
- Plan inspections and testing. We connect the verification stages to the construction schedule and to a qualified delivery team.
- Support technical closeout. We track records, corrections and the required verification handoff through to the end.
Our process
- Establish the current program documents and eligibility. We identify the version that applies and whether the project fits it.
- Align design and verification milestones. We set the milestones with your team before construction details are fixed.
- Complete authorized technical work and closeout. We perform the analysis and verification our role authorizes and support the closeout.
What you receive
A project-specific program roadmap plus the analysis, verification and documentation support defined in your engagement. The roadmap names the program version, the prerequisite requirements, the verification stages and who is responsible for each. We establish the exact requirements and the certification authority for the project's pathway; the program, not Green Summit, certifies the home.
Benefits
- High-performance housing requirements considered early enough to influence the design.
- Coordinated documentation and verification for the DOE program version that applies to your project.
- Certification goals and tax-credit review kept distinct, so neither decision leans on the other.
- Prerequisite certifications, design measures and verification stages assigned to named parties before construction begins.
Why Green Summit
Green Summit combines building-science analysis, rating-provider quality processes and project coordination. Founded in 2014, we are a licensed engineering firm and RESNET Rating Provider No. 1998-221, and we define the qualifications and evidence the selected program requires rather than treating every credential as interchangeable.
Our role starts with the program documents and ends with the verification handoff. We work from the current version rather than an old checklist, we coordinate the prerequisite certifications the pathway calls for, and we build every record to be audit-ready from day one. The program's certification authority makes the certification decision.
Frequently asked questions
What is DOE Efficient New Homes?
It is the U.S. Department of Energy's program for new homes built to a higher performance level, formerly named DOE Zero Energy Ready Home, or ZERH. A home qualifies by meeting the prerequisite requirements, design measures and verification set out in the program documents for its version and pathway. Green Summit provides the technical coordination, energy analysis and verification planning; the program's certification authority makes the certification decision.
Is Efficient New Homes a different program from ZERH?
DOE renamed Zero Energy Ready Home to Efficient New Homes. The program documents that apply to your project, not the name alone, determine its requirements, so we work from the current version rather than an old checklist.
Does meeting the program guarantee a tax credit?
No. Tax eligibility involves separate rules and dates. We keep certification goals and tax-credit review distinct, and any credit question goes through its own review with your tax advisor.
Can we add this goal after construction begins?
Sometimes. The available route depends on the design, the construction stage and the records that exist, and we review all three before answering. Early review matters because some verification cannot be recreated once the work is covered; an inspection that should have happened before drywall cannot be made up with a photograph afterward.
Does the program require us to ignore project economics?
No. We evaluate the selected pathway against the project's design, operating goals and financing requirements. The decision should reflect the actual scope and its benefits rather than an assumed tax outcome.
What work remains after design review?
Field verification, installation documentation, testing and final review. The project team should set responsibilities and milestones for all of them before construction begins.
Let's plan the higher-performance home from the start.
Tell us the housing type and location, the project stage and whether the homes already carry another certification commitment.
Related solutions
- Green Building Consulting & Certification Strategy
- Decarbonization Consulting
- C-PACE Advisory & Financing Support
Program and technical references
www.energy.gov - reference
Program information reviewed September 22, 2026. Current applicability, qualifications and program terms are confirmed for each engagement.
Or call 321-273-2200 · inquiry@greensummit.com