Potential Factors Influencing Student Rental Housing Participation in Demand-Side Management Strategies

Buildings are responsible for the largest portion of energy consumption on US electric grids. The wide participation of buildings in demand side management (DSM) through modulating or shifting electricity end uses, particularly in homes, can support decarbonization goals and increase reliability of electric power supply. The awareness and willingness of households to adjust internal loads, housing occupancy, and household energy consumption patterns all play an important role to support the potential for DSM. A particularly challenging type of housing to reach in DSM is rental housing. Historically, this type of housing has been plagued by split incentives that limit the motivation of homeowners (landlords) to improve the energy performance of these buildings since they often do not pay the utility bills. DSM presents an opportunity to support reducing the utility bills of renters through control adjustments rather than requiring the landlord to invest in energy efficient technologies. This study aims to identify household occupancy schedules and potential factors that may influence willingness to participate in DSM among renters, in particular college students. A survey-based method was conducted among 55 college students majoring in civil, environmental, and applied engineering, and showed that, while the targeted population has low awareness about DSM strategies, they would be willing to participate in a DSM in the future. The factors that appear to drive willingness to participate in DSM for this population were related to the potential reduction of electricity costs and energy savings.