Comfort Home
Rebates through participating contractors for complete air-sealing, insulation and window packages in eligible New York homes.
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Comfort Home reduces the cost of air sealing, insulation and qualifying window improvements. NYSERDA pays package incentives to your participating contractor, who must pass them on through your contract. The incentive cannot exceed the project cost.
The packages build on the home's existing condition: every requirement must already be met or be completed as part of the work.
- Good — $2,500: seal and insulate the attic and the rim joist, the edge framing above basement or crawlspace walls. At least one Good improvement must be installed, and the finished home must meet all Good package requirements. At least 75% of the attic area must meet the insulation requirements. Insulation placement depends on which spaces are heated.
- Better — $3,000, including the Good incentive: meet Good requirements, then either insulate all above-ground walls and floors over unheated spaces, or insulate all basement foundation walls to at least 18 inches below the outside ground level. All foundation types in the home must meet the applicable standards. A home that has already received the Good incentive can receive the remaining $500 for the Better upgrade.
- Windows Add-On — $1,000 or $2,000: first meet Good and the Better option covering above-ground walls and floors. Replace windows or add qualifying storm windows or insulated panels so that at least 80% of the home's window area meets ENERGY STAR requirements. Homes already at that 80% threshold cannot receive this package for further window replacements. The incentive is $1,000 when less than a year has passed since prior NYSERDA-funded residential efficiency work, or $2,000 when more than a year has passed.
A package can be incentivized only once per home. For returning customers completing additional packages, the general repeat-project incentive is $1,000 if the last NYSERDA-funded residential efficiency work was less than a year ago, or $2,000 if it was more than a year ago; the Good-to-Better upgrade has the specific $500 rule above. You can complete packages over time, but Better work must not be put off if that leaves unsealed areas where moisture can move into the building or creates a health or safety risk. This includes ceilings of garages underneath living space. In those cases, choosing Good now does not allow you to leave the necessary sealing work for later.
Westchester County homes may also qualify for Con Edison's Weather Ready support if they meet both programmes' rules. Eligible Comfort Home projects in Westchester that do not qualify for Weather Ready receive an additional $1,000 from NYSERDA. The contractor submits the Comfort Home project first and, if it qualifies for the coordinated route, provides the additional documentation for Con Edison's administrator.
In a building with two to four homes, one heating system means one project and one incentive for the whole building, with all required areas upgraded. Separate space-heating systems for each home allow separate projects and incentives for each unit.
Eligibility
You must own an eligible one- to four-unit residential property in New York or have the owner's authorization to make improvements. Manufactured homes, mobile homes and townhouses can qualify; the building need not be owner-occupied.
- The electricity customer must pay the System Benefits Charge and be served by Con Edison, NYSEG, Rochester Gas and Electric, Central Hudson, Orange and Rockland, or National Grid. Municipal-electric customers cannot receive package incentives, although they can receive assessment support. PSEG Long Island homes are excluded.
- Air-sealing and insulation packages are for households that do not meet EmPower+'s income eligibility rules. If you previously used EmPower+, EmPower or Assisted Home Performance with ENERGY STAR and no longer meet EmPower+ income limits, you can use Comfort Home under the $1,000/$2,000 previous-work rules.
- Income-eligible homeowners can use the Windows Add-On after work through one of those programmes brings the home up to Good standards and the Better route covering above-ground walls and floors over unheated spaces. A fresh assessment must confirm the condition, the earlier programme's completion report must be submitted, and all other Comfort Home and window-package rules still apply. You may use a different contractor, provided the window installer participates in Comfort Home.
- Buildings with more than four units, commercial facilities and mixed commercial/residential buildings are excluded. New construction, additions, expansions and change-of-use reconstruction are excluded. Eligible renovation categories include recently purchased homes, occupied homes or homes unoccupied for no more than 30 days, and work that takes a building out of service for less than 30 consecutive days. Renovations must still meet the package requirements. The baseline assessment must describe the home before renovation starts.
- Required health and safety work forms part of the project. If continuous mechanical ventilation is required, it must be installed before approval and payment. Old knob-and-tube electrical wiring must not touch insulation. Where it is present in an attic, at least 90% of that attic must be safe to seal and insulate for the project to qualify. This wiring in walls prevents the Better package.
- Your contractor must meet the programme's full installation standards and normally measure how much air leaks through the home before and after work, using a blower-door test. The manual allows documented testing exceptions for specified hazards and building conditions. If the required sealing work cannot achieve the programme's air-tightness target, a documented reasonable explanation can preserve the full incentive. This exception does not waive the required sealing work.
- A home owned by the contractor providing the service is generally ineligible unless NYSERDA approves it in advance. For the contracting company owner’s own residence, the manual specifically requires a different participating contractor. Employees may use the participating company they work for.
How to apply
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Start with a no-fee consultation through a participating Comfort Home contractor, or create a MyEnergy account to check eligibility. The contractor assesses the home and helps select a package.
The person named on the electricity account must sign the utility release form. For rentals, the contractor records the relationship between the account holder, landlord and person paying for the work; the owner must authorize improvements. Before work starts, the homeowner or authorized representative and the contractor sign a contract matching the approved work scope and showing the total price, Comfort Home incentive, other incentives and your remaining cost.
Work must be installed by a participating contractor or an authorized subcontractor. Installations carried out before the contractor was accepted into the programme are ineligible. The contractor handles programme submissions, including the assessment and supporting documents; obtain the agreed scope and incentive approval before installation.
After installation, the contractor completes the required checks, gives you a completion report to discuss and sign, and submits the work for review. Installations normally must be submitted within 30 days of the on-site work finishing. NYSERDA pays the contractor after approval, with the package incentive already deducted from your contract price.