Comprehensive Common Area

The SoCalREN Multifamily Program provides a safe way to help you upgrade your property in a simple way while maintaining social distancing!

Add value to your property and reduce maintenance costs with the Southern California Regional Energy Network (SoCalREN) Multifamily Program. The Comprehensive Common Area approach helps properties enjoy the benefits of an energy efficiency upgrade while minimizing contractor and staff interaction with tenants.

Participate Easily in Four Easy Steps

Access No-Cost Consulting: an energy consultant from the SoCalREN team will work with you remotely to complete an intake process and identify specific measures.
Get an Assessment: An energy assessment will identify the opportunities to upgrade the energy efficiency of your property's common areas.
Make Improvements: Have a licensed, qualified contractor install energy efficiency measures. Some measures may be self-installed (contact the Program for more details).
Receive Incentives: Earn an incentive for project costs established by the Program's allowable cost database. The incentive amount is 45% of the project cost for projects located in Disadvantaged Communities (DAC) and 35% for Non-DAC projects.

Enjoy the Benefits

Use our simple intake process to minimize the time Program team members spend on site.
Enjoy reduced operating and maintenance costs.
Contribute to regional environmental improvement goals.
Access financing and incentives.

Confirm Your Eligibility

To participate in the Program, your multifamily projects must meet the following criteria:

Be in a property served by Southern California Edison (SCE).
Be in a building that contains a minimum of five connected units.
Include at least two eligible energy efficiency measures, one of which must be an electric measure.
Achieve between 4% and 10% improvement in energy efficiency.
Reach project completion and approval within 12 months of the date of reservation.

Ready to get started? Complete our Interest Form.

Interest Form

Incentive Structure

Comprehensive Common Area Incentives are based on approved project costs established by regulatory and market guidance. Incentives are set at 35% of the approved project cost for projects not located in Disadvantaged Communities (DAC). Projects located within DAC ZIP codes receive 45% of the project cost.

Eligible Measures

The following energy efficiency measures are eligible for Incentives under the Comprehensive Common Area offering.

Category	Measure Type
Lighting	Common area lighting
Water Heating	Central domestic hot water heater
Water Heating	Insulate exposed domestic hot water piping
Water Heating	Domestic hot water recirculation controls
Pool	Programmable pool and spa pump controls
Pool	High efficiency pool and spa heater
Pool	Timer on pool and spa heater
Pool	Pool covers
Laundry	ENERGY STAR^® clothes washers

Making a Difference

In 2019, the SoCalREN Workforce Education and Training Program enrolled 67 ACES in the Program, established 20 new partnerships leading to 29 paid internships to participants, and conducted over 300 hours of training.

By registering on socalren.org/join, public agencies can now gain access to an extensive library of information, tools, templates, and case studies while being introduced to exciting new program opportunities.

SoCalREN also offers financial services for public agencies to obtain the necessary incentives or financing to make projects a reality. Reducing energy use reduces costs for public agencies, freeing up scarce public resources for services like public safety, firefighting, and educational resources.

SoCalREN works collaboratively with engineering firms, contractors, Local Government Partnerships, Southern California Edison, and SoCalGas to ensure streamlined, “one-stop” services to customers.

13,740 tenant units improved, $7,161,042 improvement incentives paid to multifamily properties, and 180 construction jobs created all in the 2019 calendar year.

In 2019, 53 percent of the projects completed were performed in disadvantaged communities. These projects achieved 3,597,973 kWh gross (3,058,277 GWh net) and 194,514 therms gross (165,337 therms net).

The SoCalREN Multifamily Program helps customers identify and prioritize project opportunities to achieve a percentage savings above baseline usage, regardless of utility. This allows property owners to make informed facility improvement decisions that best meet their property’s needs.

The mission of SoCalREN is to harness the collective action of public agencies to save energy and lead their communities on the pathway to a safe, secure, resilient, affordable and sustainable energy future.

In 2019 SoCalREN achieved 17,692,420 kWh (39% DAC), 707 kW (47% DAC) and 15,203 (100% DAC) of energy savings, while supporting 260 construction jobs and paying out a total of $6.5 million in incentives.

In 2019, SoCalREN’s energy efficiency programs collectively achieved 6,920,487 kWh and 492,655 therms of energy savings.

SoCalREN works across 12 counties with one common goal: achieving unprecedented levels of energy savings throughout Southern California by delivering programs and information to the communities, businesses, and 20 million people who call the area home.

SoCalREN Workforce Education and Training Program serves as a response to high demand for skilled labor in the energy sector through targeted youth workforce education and training, small business training regarding current energy efficiency programs, and local public agency opportunities.

SoCalREN’s Workforce Education and Training Program continually pursues new ways to provide greater employment opportunity to under-represented individuals performing energy efficiency project work.

The Metered Savings Program, Pathway to Zero, and the Revolving Savings Fund aim to overcome significant market barriers and harness the collective actions of Southern California public agencies to save energy. These programs work together seamlessly as companion programs and have expanded services available to agencies to drive deeper energy efficiency savings and create more sustainable communities.

In Q4 2019, the Residential Community Coordinator (RCC) Program interacted with nearly 748 customers through participation in 13 community events and seminars. These outreach events targeted Hispanic and Chinese audiences and successfully increased program awareness in these communities. SoCalREN’s RCC Program will continue to provide in-language support to hard-to-reach customers and provide opportunities for these customers to save money and add value to their multifamily properties.

The Architecture, Construction, and Engineering Students Pathway Program provides education and career pathways for disadvantaged youth. The Program improves educational achievement and removes barriers to higher education by co-enrolling high school students in community college courses in science, technology, engineering, art, and math fields.

CCA Program