Some states are now offering very large residential energy rebates under the Inflation Reduction Act. In a few cases, combined HOMES and HEAR incentives can reach up to $34,000 per residence, depending on the state, income level, project scope, and savings pathway.

I put together the map below to make it easier to compare the top states, including program status, maximum rebate amounts, multifamily availability, and where energy modeling may help unlock larger incentives.

When applying for energy funding in Canada, the energy model is often treated as a checkbox.

It gets built, included in the application, and used to estimate savings.

But in reality, the model is not just supporting the project. It is driving the entire financial case.

If the model is wrong, the savings are wrong.

And if the savings are wrong, the funding decision is built on a shaky foundation.

Programs across Canada, including those supported by the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM), rely on projected energy savings to evaluate projects.

Those projections determine:

Calibration usually is not limited by a lack of variables. It is limited by having too many.

When calibrating an energy model, there are essentially unlimited inputs that can be adjusted. That is why calibration can become overwhelming very quickly.

The good news is that if the model was built carefully, many inputs are probably already close.

For example, if documented wall constructions and fenestration performance values were used, those inputs are often reasonably accurate. They usually do not need major adjustment during calibration.

A few other inputs, however, tend to dominate the process because...

This week I reviewed an energy model that looked fine at first glance.

Reports were clean. 23% Savings looked decent. No obvious red flags.

But once I opened the plant, I found something that shows up more often than most teams realize:

The model was running on a default chiller curve.

And that one “quiet” default turned into a meaningful result once we corrected it — and then took the review one layer deeper.

Most modeling software will let you run a chiller plant using generic/default performance curves.

The model doesn’t...