There's a new Jenny on the block.

River City Housing — a local, nonprofit home developer — hosted a ribbon-cutting this week for "The Jenny." The 1,200-sqft, three-bedroom house is Louisville’s first zero energy ready, passive house, and it's located in the St. Dennis neighborhood.

Good insulation is a key part of what makes The Jenny so energy efficient. | Photo courtesy River City Housing.

Zero energy ready is a certification given by the US Department of Energy to a house that's so efficient that a renewable energy system would offset most or all the home's annual energy use. Zero energy ready houses feature LED lighting, ENERGY STAR-certified appliances, and high-performance windows.

Passive building is a set of principals used to "create safe, resilient, comfortable, and energy efficient structures." These buildings are made to be airtight + well insulated, and use the sun for heating in the cooler months.

All the appliances inside The Jenny are ENERGY STAR appliances. | Photo courtesy River City Housing

So, how efficient is "The Jenny"? The numbers don't lie.

It has a Home Energy Rating System rating of 11 — lower numbers are better, and the average in 2023 was 57.
It has an estimated monthly energy cost of $25 — the average is about $375.

"The Jenny" is priced at $184,000 and comes with an additional $18,000 credit from the Kentucky Office of Energy Policy.