If you're buying or selling a home in Berkeley, BESO the Building Emissions Saving Ordinance is likely to become part of your vocabulary. Starting January 1, 2026, sellers of one to four-unit homes need to complete an energy assessment when they list their property. Think of it as a check-up for your home: a registered energy assessor evaluates how your house uses energy, spots opportunities to save money, and connects you with programs that actually pay you back for making upgrades. It's Berkeley doing what Berkeley does-leading the charge on climate action, one home at a time.
Here's how it breaks down. If you listed your home before January 1, 2026, you're only on the hook for the energy assessment. But if you list on or after the new year, you'll need that assessment plus resilience upgrades completed within two years of the sale. These upgrades aren't arbitrary hoops to jump through - they're designed to make homes more energy-efficient, climate-resilient, and frankly, more appealing to the growing number of buyers who care about sustainability.
If selling or buying in Berkeley is on your horizon, lean on your Realtor (ahem, us) to guide you through the maze of bureaucratic red-tape that makes Berkeley so special. And know that with any brand-spankin’-new point of sale ordinance, the market will find its footing. We aren’t quite certain how buyers and sellers will split the cost of BESO compliance (theoretically, each party would kick in the $2,500 required for parity). But once we have a handful of transactions under our belt with the new rules, we’ll be able to share trends and advocate hard for our clients’ best interest.
We've been guiding clients through Berkeley's evolving regulations for years, and we're here to make this as painless as possible. Consider us your BESO translators - we'll walk you through what's required, connect you with the right assessors, and keep your sale on track!
