Building and household X-factors and energy consumption at the residential sector: A structural equation analysis of the effects of household and building characteristics on the annual energy consumption of US residential buildings

- Households indirectly influence residential energy use through housing choice.
- Households' total impact on energy use is comparable to that of buildings.
- Understanding households' indirect impact will enhance residential energy policy.
- Smart energy policies are needed to target both direct and indirect effects.

Energy use in residential buildings is one of the major sources of greenhouse gas emission production from cities. Using microdata from the 2009 Residential Energy Consumption Survey (RECS), this study applies structural equation modeling to analyze the direct, indirect, and total impacts of household and building characteristics on residential energy consumption. Results demonstrate that the direct impact of household characteristics on residential energy consumption is significantly smaller than the corresponding impact from the buildings. However, accounting for the indirect impact of household characteristics on energy consumption, through choice of the housing unit characteristics, the total impact of households on energy consumption is just slightly smaller than that of buildings. Outcomes of this paper call for smart policies to incorporate housing choice processes in managing residential energy consumption.