As we continue to experience the energy transition and the push toward lower carbon dioxide emissions, many in the United States are adopting electric cars and electric heating and cooling systems. But what motivates someone to move their household to electric heating?

The percentage of U.S. homes heated with electricity has increased steadily from 1% in 1950, to 8% in 1970, to 26% in 1990, to 39% in 2018. While geography, climate, housing characteristics, and household income are shown to collectively explain much of the drive towards electric heating, changing energy prices by far the most important single factor.

Join Visiting Scholar Lucas Davis for an exploration of the potential economic cost of an electrification mandate for new homes.