Dream Finders Homes and Ward Communities have partnered with Dandelion Energy to adopt geothermal heating and cooling solutions for 129 homes in Maryland. In partnership with Upstream, the two projects have been awarded $1.3 million in funding from the Maryland Energy Administration through the Maryland Ground Source Heat Pump Advantage Pilot Program.
“We are always looking for ways to deliver better value, sustainability, and comfort to our buyers,” says Joe Adler, president, capital division, Dream Finders Homes. “Partnering with Dandelion and Upstream allows us to offer cutting-edge geothermal technology without increasing costs and dramatically lowering buyers’ monthly expenses.”
The partnership represents some of the first community-wide deployments of geothermal through Dandelion and Upstream’s first-of-its-kind leasing program. The grant funding will be leveraged to unlock a 40% federal investment tax credit, allowing builders to integrate geothermal systems into their communities at the same or lower cost than traditional HVAC systems. Upstream will serve as a third-party owner of the systems, monetize the tax credit, and pass the financial benefits on to the project.
Dan Yates, CEO of Dandelion Energy, says, “We thank the Maryland Energy Administration for supporting geothermal heating and cooling as a win-win solution for affordability, electric grid reliability, and decarbonization. By building geothermal into entire communities from the start, we are providing builders a competitive edge, home buyers stable and low energy bills, and the electric grid with a highly resilient, predictable load profile that stabilizes the network for everyone. Dandelion is excited to start drilling these new systems.”
Dandelion Energy will install high-efficiency geothermal heating and cooling across 129 homes while Dream Finders and Ward Communities will deliver their home buyers a premium system that uses the stable underground temperature to deliver the highest efficiency HVAC option available.
Combined, the two projects will deliver annual energy bill savings between 30% and 40% for homeowners and last two times as long as air-source heat pumps, Dandelion reports. The two communities will reduce peak demand on Maryland’s grid by 20% in the summer and 65% in the winter compared to air-source heat pumps.
“Our goal is to give homeowners a better-performing home, not just a new home,” says Joe Lucado, vice president of construction operations at Ward Communities. “By integrating geothermal technology into these communities, we’re delivering lower utility costs, greater comfort, and long-term value without increasing the purchase price of the home.”
Daniel Sadik, CCO of Upstream, adds: “Partnering with Dandelion Energy, Ward, and Dream Finders represents a massive step forward for community-scale geothermal energy in Maryland. Through Upstream, we are leveraging the commercial Investment Tax Credit to eliminate the traditional upfront cost barriers of geothermal installation. It is fantastic to see builders embracing innovative third-party leasing structures to make high-efficiency, fossil-fuel-free developments an immediate reality for Maryland home buyers.”
