Summary: 56 units. Apartment complex. 12 buildings. All 56 units qualified.
Results: Section 45L Tax Credits for 2011 = $112,000

Details: 12 buildings, 56 units apartments located in Los Angeles, California. The apartments is a 56-unit complex comprised of 12 buildings that are each no more than 3 stories above grade. 56 dwelling units were leased to residents in 2008.

The 56-unit apartment building in Los Angeles, California is located in Climate Zone 3B as defined by the Department of Energy and classified as a hot-dry climate zone relative to the rest of the country. As such, most of the property’s energy use comes from cooling.

KBKG's 45L tax credit energy analysis of the apartment property found that 56 of the 56 dwelling units leased in 2008 provided a level of heating and cooling energy consumption that is at least 50 percent below that of a reference dwelling unit constructed in accordance with the standards of Section 404 of the 2004 Supplement to the 2003 International Energy Conservation Code. Furthermore, all 56 of the qualifying dwelling units have building envelope component improvements that provide for a level of heating and cooling energy consumption that is at least 10 percent below that of a reference dwelling unit as required by the tax code.

Cooling at the Los Angeles, California apartment building is provided through air-cooled hydronic systems. Also, each fan coil unit contains a TXV valve and each air handling unit is matched in size with an appropriate corresponding air conditioner. Both are considered energy efficient measures in regions such as Climate Zone 3B.

Ductwork is also considered energy efficient for the 45L tax credits since it is located within each conditioned space of the development. This practice limits duct losses and maximizes the amount of conditioned air being transferred into the living space.

Envelope features at California apartment building that helped to reduce the heating and cooling consumption of each qualifying dwelling unit included the use of insulation with high R-values and fenestration with low U-factors and solar heat gain coefficients. These factors, along with a low window-to-floor area ratio and the installation of an air retarding wrap all contributed to an overall increase in each of the dwelling unit’s energy efficiency.

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