One of the most urgent challenges in buildings today is how to affordably retrofit existing ones. Too much of our current building stock wastes energy and is unhealthy or uncomfortable to occupy, especially in low-income communities and communities of color. In order to limit global warming to 1.5°C, the International Energy Agency's Net Zero by 2050 Roadmap urges a step jump in "zero-carbon-ready" retrofits to a rate of 30 million dwellings per year through 2030. Passive House retrofits provide a proven pathway to dramatically reduce the energy use and operation carbon emissions of existing buildings of all types. Both PHI and PHIUS offer retrofit certification pathways, and project teams around the world are tackling retrofits of everything from single-family brownstones to apartment towers.
Read, view, and listen to Passive House retrofit examples and insights in the articles, videos, and podcast interviews below.
Articles
1/30/26
Bringing a Syracuse Landmark Back to Life with a Regenerative Retrofit
Article, Project Case Study, Retrofit, NYSERDA Buildings of Excellence
1/23/26
The Relevance of Embodied Carbon in the Passive House World - 475 HQ Retrofit Case Study
Article, Embodied Carbon, Retrofit
1/16/26
Retrofit Labs Insight Briefs Now Available
Article, Retrofit
12/19/25
Retrofit Highlights of 2025
Article, Retrofit
Videos
4/1/26
101: Mechanical Systems Design in Smoke + Extreme Conditions
PHA Live, Video
3/18/26
ROCKWOOL Component Spotlight: Sound Off: Designing for Optimal Acoustic Performance
PHA Live, Video, PH Component Spotlight
3/11/26
Passive House Without the Price Tag – Lessons From Timbre & Harmony
PHA Live, Video
3/4/26
101: Mass Timber and Passive House: Synergies, Challenges, and Carbon Accounting
PHA Live, Video
Projects
4/18/24
Colombini Residence
Project Case Study, Mixed Use, New Construction, Single Family, Mass Timber
4/18/24
Bird's Wing Passivhaus + Duplex
Project Case Study, Mixed Use, New Construction, Multifamily, Single Family, Duplex/Multiplex, Mass Timber, PHI
4/18/24
Leichhardt enerPHit
Project Case Study, Mixed Use, Retrofit, Single Family, PHI
4/18/24
Bellwether on Main
Project Case Study, New Construction, Phius, Single Family