Department of Housing and Community Development Electrical Vehicle Readiness Study​

This report is intended to be an information resource of the current building codes, existing research, and current market data related to the requirements and costs of electric vehicle readiness in new construction single-family and multi-family dwellings.

Research included identification and review of industry stakeholders, current reports, and building standards related to current and future electric vehicle charging for single-family and multi-family dwellings.

For each residential parking arrangement the technical analysis encompassed several areas including determination of appropriate voltage and amperage needs for electric vehicle charging, the effect of solar photovoltaic (PV) systems installed in conjunction with electric vehicle charging loads, the estimate of the added cost to housing construction and subdivision infrastructure, current ventilation requirements, and the types of housing where electric vehicle charging may be impractical.

Existing building codes, builder awareness and public and private sector stakeholder involvement appears to have created a market for the feasibility of electric vehicle readiness. Supporting the feasibility of installing electric vehicle chargers, several developers are offering and have offered electric vehicle-ready homes. Utilities have also offered assistance as well as incentives to promote the purchase of electric vehicles.

The cost of electric vehicle-ready homes does not appear to be a barrier to the implementation of electric vehicle chargers and the required infrastructure. Most builders do not see this as a significant cost increase in building a residential dwelling unit or multi-family unit. The cost for electric vehicle readiness ranges from under $50 for a simple receptacle level 1 installation to under $300 per unit for a Level 2 installation prewired with circuit breakers including labor but without the cost of the charger. Most Investor Owned Utilities agree that if the Level 2 charging requirements are kept at or less than 240 volt, 40-amp within a 200-amp panel there would be little impact on the utility grid infrastructure.