Southern Hills - Building 5
Multifamily Housing in Washington, DC, DC · 4217-4221 4th St SE · 20032
At a glance
Southern Hills - Building 5 is a 31,318-square-foot multifamily housing building at 4217-4221 4th St SE in Washington, DC, built in 1949. In its 2024 Washington, DC benchmarking disclosure it reported an ENERGY STAR score of 50 out of 100 (grade D), a site energy-use intensity of 38.1 kBtu/ft² and 105 tCO₂e of greenhouse-gas emissions. That score is higher than 18% of the 1,618 scored multifamily housing buildings in Washington, DC.
Clean and Affordable Energy Act / BEPS · reporting year 2024
Benchmarking record
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| ENERGY STAR score | 50 (band D) |
| Site EUI | 38.1 kBtu/ft² |
| Source EUI | 106.7 kBtu/ft² |
| GHG emissions | 105 tCO₂e |
| GHG intensity | 3.4 kgCO₂e/ft² |
| Electricity | 349,903 kWh |
| Natural gas | 0 therms |
| Water use | 3,468 kgal |
| Gross floor area | 31,318 sq ft |
| Source record | dc:PM34776789:2024 |
The disclosure history
Year over year
| Year | Score | Δ | Site EUI | GHG emissions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024latest | 50 | +22 | 38.1 kBtu/ft² | 105 tCO₂e |
| 2023 | 28 | +12 | 41.9 kBtu/ft² | 115 tCO₂e |
| 2022 | 16 | +4 | 49.7 kBtu/ft² | 137 tCO₂e |
| 2021 | 12 | 51.0 kBtu/ft² | 143 tCO₂e |
Compliance context
Clean and Affordable Energy Act / BEPS
DC's Building Energy Performance Standards (BEPS) require buildings below the performance standard to improve over compliance cycles (the first ends December 31, 2026; later cycles run five years), with penalties for buildings that fail to meet their pathway.
Ownership
SOUTHERN HILLS LP
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Location
- Address
- 4217-4221 4th St SE
- City
- Washington, DC
- State
- District of Columbia
- ZIP
- 20032
- Coordinates
- 38.82859, -77.00147
Within ~1 km
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See also: most efficient in Washington, DC · biggest emitters
How does Southern Hills - Building 5 compare with other multifamily housing buildings in Washington, DC?
The latest disclosures cover 1,799 multifamily housing buildings in Washington, DC, out of 6,870 buildings citywide. Southern Hills - Building 5's ENERGY STAR score of 50 compares with an average of 72 across the 1,618 that report a score; it scores higher than 18% of them and lower than 81%. Its site EUI of 38.1 kBtu/ft² is about 25% below the average of 51.1 kBtu/ft² — it uses less energy per square foot than the typical building in that group. Its emissions intensity of 3.4 kgCO₂e/ft² is about 12% below the group average of 3.8 kgCO₂e/ft².
At 31,318 sq ft, it is about 77% below the average floor area of 136,346 sq ft for those buildings. It was built in 1949, 16 years earlier than the group's average year built (1965). Across all 24 jurisdictions BuildingCensus covers, the 59,945 multifamily housing buildings average an ENERGY STAR score of 70 and a site EUI of 59.0 kBtu/ft².
How has Southern Hills - Building 5's energy performance changed over time?
BuildingCensus holds 4 Washington, DC disclosures for Southern Hills - Building 5, covering report years 2021–2024. Its ENERGY STAR score went from 12 in 2021 to 50 in 2024 (+38 points). Site EUI moved from 51.0 kBtu/ft² (2021) to 38.1 kBtu/ft² (2024), a 25% decrease. Reported emissions went from 143 tCO₂e to 105 tCO₂e over the same span (down 27%).
What does an ENERGY STAR score of 50 mean?
ENERGY STAR scores run from 1 to 100 and are computed by the EPA's Portfolio Manager as a percentile against similar buildings nationwide, adjusted for climate, size and use: a score of 50 means the building performs better than about 50% of its national peers. BuildingCensus bands the score into report-card grades; 50 falls in band D — lowest band (1–54). It sits 25 points below 75, the threshold for ENERGY STAR certification. In Washington, DC, 47% of scored buildings are at 75 or above.
Site energy-use intensity (EUI) is the energy a building uses on site in a year divided by its floor area, in thousand Btu per square foot — lower is more efficient. Southern Hills - Building 5's 38.1 kBtu/ft² across 31,318 sq ft works out to about 1.2 billion Btu (350 MWh-equivalent) in 2024. Its source EUI of 106.7 kBtu/ft² also counts the energy lost generating and delivering that power, which is why it is higher. The disclosure also reports 349,903 kWh of electricity, 0 therms of natural gas and 3,468 thousand gallons of water for the year.
Which law requires Southern Hills - Building 5 to report its energy use?
Southern Hills - Building 5 reports under the Clean and Affordable Energy Act / BEPS, the legal basis of Washington, DC's Building Energy Benchmarking program, which publishes each covered building's annual benchmarking results. The record shown here is the report-year 2024 disclosure (source record dc:PM34776789:2024). DC's Building Energy Performance Standards (BEPS) require buildings below the performance standard to improve over compliance cycles (the first ends December 31, 2026; later cycles run five years), with penalties for buildings that fail to meet their pathway.
More multifamily housing buildings in Washington, DC
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- Friendship Courts Apartments, LP - 4622· 31,178 sq ft · score 77 (B)
- 1301-5 U Street SE· 31,104 sq ft · score 51 (D)
- 4117-4121 W St. NW· 31,040 sq ft · score 32 (D)
- 2201-2205 42nd St. NW· 31,040 sq ft · score 42 (D)
- 1400 Whittier Place NW· 31,017 sq ft · EUI 16.6 kBtu/ft²
- Multifamily Housing buildings in Washington, DC· 1,799 benchmarked
- All Washington, DC benchmarked buildings· Clean and Affordable Energy Act / BEPS
- Most efficient large buildings in Washington, DC
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Frequently asked questions
What is Southern Hills - Building 5's energy grade?
Southern Hills - Building 5 scores 50 out of 100 on ENERGY STAR — band D, lowest band (1–54) — in its 2024 Washington, DC disclosure. Scores are national percentiles against similar buildings; 75+ qualifies for ENERGY STAR certification.
How much energy does Southern Hills - Building 5 use?
Its 2024 site energy-use intensity was 38.1 kBtu/ft² (106.7 kBtu/ft² source) across 31,318 sq ft, including 349,903 kWh of electricity and 0 therms of natural gas.
What are Southern Hills - Building 5's carbon emissions?
Southern Hills - Building 5 reported 105 tCO₂e of greenhouse-gas emissions (3.4 kgCO₂e/ft²) for 2024.
Where is Southern Hills - Building 5?
Southern Hills - Building 5 is at 4217-4221 4th St SE, in Washington, DC 20032. Its coordinates are 38.82859, -77.00147 (latitude, longitude), as published in the Building Energy Benchmarking file.
How big is Southern Hills - Building 5 and when was it built?
Southern Hills - Building 5 has 31,318 sq ft of gross floor area, as reported in its 2024 disclosure. The disclosure lists 1949 as its year built. It is classed as multifamily housing.
Is Southern Hills - Building 5 covered by the Clean and Affordable Energy Act / BEPS?
Yes — it appears in the 2024 Building Energy Benchmarking disclosure, which lists the buildings reporting under the Clean and Affordable Energy Act / BEPS.
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About this data
Source: Building Energy Benchmarking (Clean and Affordable Energy Act / BEPS), as published July 9, 2026. See the methodology for how records are matched, cleaned and scored.
Cite as: BuildingCensus, “Southern Hills - Building 5, Washington, DC — 2024 benchmarking disclosure”, https://buildingcensus.com/buildings/washington-dc/southern-hills-building-5-b1a6b1c1 (data as of July 9, 2026).