REScheck & COMcheck Ayer MA - Quick Facts
Local energy code in Ayer
- Ayer enforces the Massachusetts Stretch Energy Code for new construction and major renovations. IECC Climate Zone 5A.
- Massachusetts has three energy-code levels - base (2021 IECC), Stretch, and Specialized (Opt-In) - and Ayer is on the Stretch Code.
REScheck & COMcheck in Ayer
- REScheck documents the prescriptive residential path for Ayer additions, alterations and renovations (from $300); new-construction performance projects use a full HERS energy model instead.
- Commercial projects use COMcheck for the prescriptive path (from $600); larger new commercial buildings need third-party performance certification under the Stretch Code.
- 24-48 hour turnaround - documentation ready to upload with your Ayer permit application.
2026 Mass Save incentives in Ayer
- All-electric renovations and additions can earn Mass Save incentives up to $20,000 (Level 1) or $30,000 (Level 2) for a single-family home, verified by a RESNET-certified HERS rater.
RESNET-certified · 15,000+ ratings completed · 5.0 stars across 136 Google reviews · (617) 501-6788
REScheck & COMcheck Ayer MA
Fast, accurate REScheck and COMcheck energy code compliance reports for residential and commercial projects in Ayer, Massachusetts. We prepare the documentation your building department needs to issue a permit — without the cost of a full performance-path energy rating when your project does not require one.
What we deliver
A signed compliance report matched to your plans and ready to upload with your Ayer building permit application.
Understanding REScheck and COMcheck
Both are free compliance software tools developed by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to demonstrate that a building meets the International Energy Conservation Code (IECC). They document your envelope, and for commercial work your lighting and mechanical systems, so a plan reviewer in Ayer can confirm compliance quickly.
What is a REScheck?
REScheck is DOE software for residential compliance — detached one- and two-family homes and multifamily buildings three stories or fewer. It runs a UA (insulation and window) trade-off calculation against the IECC, letting extra performance in one assembly offset another so the whole envelope still passes.
What is a COMcheck?
For commercial and four-plus-story residential buildings, COMcheck is required. It documents envelope, lighting, and mechanical compliance against the IECC or ASHRAE Standard 90.1 and produces the certificates a commercial plan reviewer expects.
Is a REScheck Right for Your Ayer Project?
REScheck is the simplest path for smaller residential projects in Ayer that do not need a HERS rating. It is typically the right tool for:
- New residential construction or an addition of 1,000 sq ft or less that does not require a HERS rating
- Detached accessory structures with conditioned space
- Additions, alterations, or renovations to a one- or two-family home
- Multifamily buildings of three stories or fewer
- Permit applications needing residential envelope documentation on the prescriptive or UA trade-off path
COMcheck Projects in Ayer
COMcheck is required for commercial and larger projects in Ayer. Reach for a COMcheck when your project involves:
- Medical, dental, and professional office construction
- Tenant fit-outs and interior or exterior lighting alterations
- High-rise residential buildings of four stories or more
- New mechanical (HVAC) or service water heating systems in commercial spaces
- Commercial buildings — offices, retail, restaurants, warehouses, and mixed-use
What Your Ayer Compliance Report Includes
Plans matched to code
We enter your assemblies, fenestration, and (for commercial) lighting and mechanical details exactly as designed, so the report reflects what you are actually building in Ayer.
COMcheck report
The COMcheck Envelope, Lighting, and Mechanical Compliance Certificates plus the Plan Review Checklist — the full package a commercial plan reviewer expects for permit submission.
Fast, permit-ready turnaround
We deliver documentation ready to upload with your building permit application, and we answer plan-review questions if the department asks for revisions.
REScheck report
A signed REScheck compliance certificate matched to your plans, the inspection checklist, and the UA trade-off summary showing your insulation R-values and window U-factors meet the residential energy code.
Serving Ayer and Middlesex County
Ayer sits in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, in IECC climate zone 5A — the cold-climate zone that drives the insulation and air-sealing levels your REScheck or COMcheck must document. We prepare compliance reports for projects throughout Middlesex County, matched to the code edition Ayer currently enforces.
REScheck & COMcheck Pricing in Ayer
Transparent starting prices. Final cost depends on project size, number of assemblies, and scope.
- REScheck (residential): starting at $300
- COMcheck (commercial): starting at $600
- Revisions to match plan-review comments are handled promptly
REScheck reports start at $300 and COMcheck reports start at $600 for projects in Ayer. Send your plans for an exact quote.
Trusted by Ayer Builders & Owners
Google Review
“Best decision I made was hiring Home Energy Efficiency Consultants LLC. Their attention to detail and willingness to answer all my questions made the process stress-free.”
Which Energy Code Report Does a Ayer Project Need?
Ayer adopted the Massachusetts Stretch Code effective January 1, 2012 and is not one of the 60 communities on the Specialized (Opt-In) Code, so projects follow the Massachusetts Stretch Code (225 CMR 22.00 and 23.00). We confirm Ayer's current code status against the state list before we prepare any report.
| Your Ayer project | What the energy code paperwork usually is |
|---|---|
| New single-family home or low-rise residential building | In Stretch Code towns, a HERS rating (maximum HERS 42 mixed-fuel, 45 all-electric) or Passive House. REScheck is not accepted for new homes under the Stretch Code. |
| Residential addition of 1,000 sq ft or less (and not over 100% of the existing home) | REScheck (REScheck-Web, 2023 Massachusetts Stretch Code) or the prescriptive tables |
| Residential addition over 1,000 sq ft or over 100% of the existing home | A HERS rating of the whole house (HERS 65 or lower mixed-fuel, 70 or lower all-electric) |
| Basement or attic conversion with no change to footprint or roofline | No HERS rating required; REScheck or prescriptive documentation |
| Residential renovation or alteration | Prescriptive alteration rules; REScheck can document the envelope. Large "extensive" alterations over 1,000 sq ft may need a HERS rating. |
| New commercial building up to 20,000 sq ft | COMcheck: Envelope, Lighting and Mechanical certificates plus the Plan Review Inspection Checklist |
| New commercial building over 20,000 sq ft | COMcheck Lighting and Mechanical, with the envelope shown by backstop and thermal-bridge calculations, on a performance path (Targeted Performance/TEDI or ASHRAE 90.1 Appendix G) or Passive House |
| Commercial addition, alteration, or lighting/HVAC change | COMcheck for the altered systems |
| Multifamily building over 12,000 sq ft | Passive House or a HERS/performance path |
Based on 225 CMR 22.00 and 23.00 (Massachusetts energy code, 2025 edition). Building departments make the final call, so we confirm the path for your project before we start. Ayer is in Middlesex County, served from our Somerville (519 Broadway) office.
How We Prepare Your Ayer REScheck or COMcheck
Send your plans
Email the permit set for your Ayer project. We tell you the same day whether you need a REScheck, a COMcheck or a HERS rating.
We model the building
We enter every assembly, window, light fixture and HVAC unit as designed and flag anything that fails before the plan reviewer sees it.
Permit-ready report
You get the signed compliance certificates and checklists, ready to upload with your Ayer building permit application.
Plan review support
If the building department asks for changes, we revise the report and answer the reviewer's questions.
REScheck & COMcheck for Ayer Permits
Every Ayer project starts with the same question: is a REScheck enough, or does the town need a HERS rating? The answer comes from the energy code, and Ayer has been on the Massachusetts Stretch Code since January 1, 2012. It has not adopted the Specialized (Opt-In) Code.
How Ayer permits are filed
The Ayer Building Department works out of Town Hall at 1 Main Street. Its Building Permit Application is a five-page form posted on the town website, and the form warns that incomplete application packages cannot be processed. The Building Commissioner's office hours listed on the application are 8 to 11 AM, Monday through Friday. A missing or wrong energy document is one of the easiest ways to end up with an incomplete package, so we help you get it right the first time.
Matching the report to the job
REScheck fits a small residential addition or alteration where the prescriptive path is allowed, such as an addition up to 1,000 sq ft that is not more than 100% of the existing home.
HERS rating is required for new homes in Ayer (HERS 42 mixed-fuel or 45 all-electric) and for larger renovations (HERS 65 mixed-fuel or 70 all-electric).
COMcheck covers commercial buildings and fit-outs. Under the Stretch Code, a commercial building over 20,000 sq ft needs more than a COMcheck.
HEEC's Marlborough office at 272 Lincoln St C1 is the closest to Ayer. We send printed-ready PDFs you can add straight to your application package.
If your Ayer project sits close to the 1,000 sq ft addition limit, ask us to check the numbers before you submit, so the package goes in complete.
REScheck & COMcheck Questions for Ayer Projects
Do I need a REScheck or a HERS rating in Ayer?
Under the Massachusetts Stretch Code, new homes need a HERS rating (HERS 42 mixed-fuel or 45 all-electric) or Passive House. REScheck is used for additions of 1,000 sq ft or less that are not over 100% of the existing home, basement and attic conversions, and renovations. We confirm Ayer's code status before we start.
When is a COMcheck required in Massachusetts?
A COMcheck documents commercial energy code compliance for new commercial buildings up to 20,000 sq ft (envelope, lighting and mechanical), for lighting and mechanical on larger buildings, and for commercial additions and alterations such as fit-outs, lighting changes and HVAC replacements. Massachusetts commercial code is based on the 2021 IECC with state amendments in 225 CMR 23.00.
What does a COMcheck include?
The COMcheck Envelope Compliance Certificate, the Interior and Exterior Lighting Compliance Certificates, the Mechanical Compliance Certificate, and the Plan Review Inspection Checklist. Massachusetts 225 CMR 23.00 Section C103.2 lists these as the construction-document requirements for buildings up to 20,000 sq ft.
What does a REScheck include?
A REScheck compares your home's envelope (insulation R-values and window U-values) to the code using a total UA trade-off, so stronger performance in one assembly can offset another. The report includes the compliance certificate and inspection checklist. Mandatory items such as air sealing and duct sealing still apply.
What size addition needs a HERS rating instead of REScheck?
In Massachusetts, a residential addition over 1,000 sq ft, or over 100% of the existing conditioned floor area, needs a HERS rating of the whole house (225 CMR 22.00 R502.1.1). Converting an existing basement or attic without changing the footprint or roofline does not.
What information do you need to prepare a REScheck or COMcheck?
Plans with wall, roof and floor sections, insulation types and R-values, the window and door schedule with U-factors and SHGC, and for commercial work the lighting fixture schedule with wattages, lighting controls, and HVAC and water heating equipment schedules.
Which software version is used in Massachusetts?
REScheck-Web with the 2023 Massachusetts Stretch Code option for residential, and COMcheck-Web set to the 2021 IECC (or ASHRAE 90.1-2019) for commercial, matching the code Massachusetts enforces.
How much does a REScheck or COMcheck cost in Ayer?
REScheck reports start at $300 and COMcheck reports start at $600. The final price depends on the size of the project and how many assemblies and systems need to be entered. Send your plans for an exact quote.
Is Ayer on the Stretch Code?
Yes. The state's adoption list shows Ayer on the Massachusetts Stretch Code since January 1, 2012, and not on the Specialized (Opt-In) Code. New homes need a HERS rating (HERS 42 mixed-fuel or 45 all-electric); small additions can use REScheck.
How do I submit a building permit in Ayer?
The Ayer Building Department at Town Hall, 1 Main Street, posts a Building Permit Application on the town website and notes that incomplete packages cannot be processed. Include your REScheck, COMcheck or HERS report with the application.
Related: HERS rating in Ayer · Blower door testing · COMcheck & REScheck reports
Need a REScheck or COMcheck in Ayer?
Send us your plans and we will tell you which report you need and get it back to you fast — ready for your Ayer permit.
Email Energyconsultants01@gmail.com Call 617-501-6788
Mass Save®-Listed HERS Rater
U.S. DOE Efficient New HomeTrusted Partner — Verified
ENERGY STAR®Partner
Phius CertifiedPassive House Verifier
ICCMember★★★★★136 Google
Reviews
The Phius Certified Verifier logo is used under license from Phius.
Last updated · Home Energy Efficiency Consultants, RESNET-certified HERS raters
HERS Ratings in Ayer, Massachusetts
Home Energy Efficiency Consultants provides Ayer with certified HERS ratings, blower door and duct leakage testing, and Massachusetts energy-code compliance for new construction, additions, and major renovations — with same-day preliminary reports.
We rate homes across the Commonwealth from our four offices. Reach the one nearest your Ayer project — Somerville, Framingham, Marlborough, or Everett — or call (617) 501-6788 to schedule a Ayer rating.
More Massachusetts Towns We Serve
Certified HERS ratings, blower door testing and energy code compliance across all 351 Massachusetts cities and towns.
